World more volatile and dangerous than at any time since Cold War, Rishi Sunak warns on trip to Europe

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1 year ago

April 23, 2024

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Rishi Sunak warned the world is now “more volatile and dangerous” than at any time since the Cold War, as the prime minister embarked on a trip to Poland and Germany to discuss the threat of expansionist Russia and refocus the world’s eyes back on to Ukraine.

Speaking to journalists on the flight over to Poland, the prime minister said we were “unfortunately living in a world that is more dangerous than we’ve known it in decade, probably more dangerous than the end of the Cold War”, adding that this was why it was “important in that we do invest more in our defence and that’s what we’ve been doing”.

“My first priority is to keep people safe, and you’re right, I have been honest with people that the world is less safe than it has been in decades and my job, indeed my obligation, is to invest to keep the country safe, and that’s what I’m doing.”

Announcing a further £500m of military support being sent to Ukraine – taking the UK’s total support this year to £3bn – the prime minister told journalists he was “proud” the UK had led on supporting Ukraine and also told European allies it was “important” for Europeans to invest in security in these volatile times.

“We’re stepping up because that is what the situation demands and requires,” he said.

Politics latest: Rwanda bill finally clears parliament

“And if we are joined by other European partners in that it is important that Europeans invest in their own security,” he told Sky News.

“[It was] very welcome news over the weekend from the US, but that doesn’t take away from the need for Europeans to invest in their security.

“I am very proud that the UK has always led in that regard. We are Europe’s largest defence spender and one of the few countries that’s consistently met the 2% NATO pledge and today’s action is another example of us leading by example.”

The prime minister is joined on this trip by his Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, raising expectations that the prime minister might be making a bigger funding commitment on defence as he comes back on to the world stage. He will meet Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz over the next 24 hours.

The UK on Monday committed its largest ever donation of kit, including more than 400 vehicles, more than 1,600 missiles and 4m rounds of ammunition to the Ukraine war effort as Russia makes inroads.

“They have asked and we have answered,” said the prime minister as he warned that Mr Putin “will not stop at the Polish border” if Russia defeats Ukraine.

But having raided the UK’s arsenal to send to equipment to Ukraine, the next obvious question is whether the prime minister will finally lift the UK’s defence spending to 2.5% of GDP in the face of the growing threat of Russia and China.

The drumbeat is getting louder with two ministers last month – Anne-Marie Trevelyan and Tom Tugendhat – publicly urging the government to invest at a “much greater pace”.

The chancellor has said spending above the 2% NATO target would rise to this figure “as soon as economic conditions allow”.

The House of Commons spending watchdog – the Public Accounts Committee – has warned the gap between the Ministry of Defence budget and cost of the UK’s desired military capabilities has risen by £16.9bn – the largest deficit ever – despite a promised injection of over £46bn over the next decade.

Fresh from victory on the passing of his landmark Rwanda legislation and emphatic that a regular rhythm hour of flights will be taking off from July, the trip to Europe is part of a publicity blitz as the embattled prime minister looks to get on the front foot ahead of next week’s local elections, aware that a disastrous night could put him not just back on to his heels but into free fall.

Kyiv’s weapons pile has been depleted, with a $60bn military aid package held up in the US Congress for months. The House of Representatives finally approved the funding at the weekend, with the deal now awaiting approval in the Senate, which should mean American weapons should start flowing into Ukraine in the coming days.

Politics

The crypto fund domicile decision: EU or the UK?

Published

2 hours ago

June 17, 2025

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The crypto fund domicile decision: EU or the UK?

As the EU’s MiCA regulation and the UK’s evolving crypto laws diverge, fund managers face a key choice: to opt for the EU’s legal certainty and passporting or the UK’s flexible, innovation-driven approach.

Politics

Sir Keir Starmer hits out at politicians who ‘shout and scream but do nothing’ over grooming gangs

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2 hours ago

June 17, 2025

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Sir Keir Starmer hits out at politicians who 'shout and scream but do nothing' over grooming gangs

Sir Keir Starmer has said he gets “frustrated” with politicians who “shout and scream but do nothing” as he defended past comments about a grooming gangs inquiry.

Speaking to Sky News’s political editor Beth Rigby, the prime minister was asked if he regretted saying in January that those calling for a national probe into paedophile rings were “jumping on a far-right bandwagon” – given he has now agreed to one.

Politics latest: Baroness Casey asks people to ‘keep calm’ about grooming gang ethnicity data

Sir Keir said he was “really clear” he was talking about the Tories, who were demanding an inquiry they never set up when they were in government.

He said: “I was calling out those politicians.

“I am frustrated with politics when people shout and scream a lot and do nothing when they’ve got the opportunity to do it. It’s one of the worst aspects of politics, in my view.”

Sir Keir also said there “must be accountability” for authorities who “shied away” from talking about the ethnicity of perpetrators for fear of being branded racist, as exposed in a report by Baroness Casey published on Monday.

Asked if he is happy for “social workers, policemen and people that failed” to be held accountable, the prime minister said: “Where the inquiry uncovers failure or wrongdoing, then there should absolutely be accountability.

“That is amongst the purposes of an inquiry, and it’s a statutory inquiry… which will therefore mean there is power to compel evidence of witnesses because it’s important that it is comprehensive and important that it gets to every single issue. And as part of that process, there’s accountability for individuals who did wrong.”

Baroness Casey was asked to produce an audit of sexual abuse carried out by grooming gangs in England and Wales in January, when comments by tech billionaire Elon Musk brought the scandal back into the spotlight.

The government initially resisted calls from the Tories for a national inquiry into grooming gangs, saying they wanted to focus on implementing the recommendations of Professor Alexis Jay’s seven-year review into child abuse.

The review concluded in 2022 but the Conservatives did not implement its recommendations before they lost the election last July.

The government’s position has changed following Baroness Casey’s audit, which recommended an inquiry.

Her report found that ethnicity data is not recorded for two-thirds of grooming gang perpetrators.

However at a local level in three police forces – Greater Manchester, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire – “there has been a disproportionality of group-based child sexual exploitation offending by men of Asian ethnicity”.

The cross bench peer said instead of looking into whether ethnicity or cultural factors played a part, authorities “avoided the topic altogether for fear of appearing racist”, and this warranted further investigation.