Andy Burnham’s Government issued pressing WW3 warning as UK faces 1,000-day menace
Andy Burnham must go ‘further and faster’ to prepare the UK for the possibility of war in 1,000 days, a group of peers have warned, as Russia intensifies its hybrid threats against Nato
Andy Burnham has been hit with a warning(Image: Aaron Chown/Press Association)
Andy Burnham’s Government has been issued a horrifying WW3 warning – with just 1,000 days to act. Burnham has been told that he must move “further and faster” to ready the UK for war within the next 1,000 days. The warning comes from a group of Lords who state that industry will be unable to “move quickly enough” to safeguard Britain unless the Government transforms its “buyer-seller” relationship with firms.
The peers have also encourages regulators to remove “overly prescriptive” rules as the country attempts to ready itself for war in the next 1,000 days. In a report released today (November 11 ), the committee said investors also required “more certainty” on the timeline and nature of contracts for capital to flow.
It urged a “significant shift in the culture” at the Ministry of Defence (MoD), which peers said has “too often focused on the comfort blanket of following process rather than delivering capability at speed”.
The Lords Industry and Regulators Committee have published a report(Image: British Army)
In a series of recommendations, the peers argued that the ministry should become “more comfortable” with accepting risk in its procurement of capabilities. And the government body should also weigh up a broad range of factors in determining value for money, not merely low costs.
The report said: “When procuring innovative capabilities, the Government should consider funding a number of companies working on the same problem to ensure greater industrial resilience and capacity.
“Much of the bureaucracy and process in defence procurement was intended to reduce the risk of wasting public money. This has slowed down procurement without obviously reducing waste.”
It continued: “The Ministry of Defence must become more comfortable with greater flexibility and risk in its procurement of new capabilities, accepting that the finished product might not be as initially envisaged, that failure can be instructive, and that speed can be more important than cost management.”
The Lords also urged the Prime Minister to back up pledges from Defence Secretary Wes Streeting to give officials the green light to take greater risks, with a “strategic statement on defence to ensure industry is able to provide UK defence readiness”.
The Lords have urged Andy Burnham to act faster(Image: Leon Neal/Press Association)
The report said: “If the Government continues its arm’s-length, buyer-seller relationship with industry delivering against detailed and prescriptive technical specifications, industry will not be able to move quickly enough to exploit fast-developing technology or to protect the UK in the event of war.”
“The Ministry of Defence must improve its ability to work with the defence industry on a quicker, more informal basis to improve outcomes. It should consult earlier in process, before requirements become fixed.”
The Lords also urged the Prime Minister to back up pledges from Defence Secretary Wes Streeting(Image: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
The committee praised the Government’s acceptance of the 2025 strategic defence review’s recommendation for a fresh partnership with industry. They stated that its recommendations centre on “where the Government must go further and faster”.
This follows a stark warning from the Defence Secretary that Britain must be prepared for war within 1,000 days as Russia steps up its hybrid warfare campaign against Nato.
