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'Claims on war wrong'

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date08 April 2024
Publication titleEvening Gazette
Outgoing defence minister James Heappey called on ministers to do more to prepare for conflict just weeks after resigning his MoD post, warning the UK has failed to prepare for war as a "whole-nation endeavour"

His former boss Ben Wallace echoed his sentiments, suggesting some in Government are "just hoping" threats to the UK "will go away".

Asked about the warnings, Deputy Prime Minister Mr Dowden said: "I think they are wrong."

He told the BBC's Sunday With

Laura Kuenssberg he does however agree the UK is facing "rising threats" from across the globe.

He added: "We are taking action across the board. We have set up a national cybersecurity centre in respect of cyber. I now take dozens of decisions daily about investment to protect our economic security.

"This world is going to get more dangerous as time goes on. We see a combination of hostile states, not least Russia, Iran, North Korea and China. We need to be taking action across those areas. Of course there is always more to do, but I believe we are making good progress against rising threats."

Writing in the Telegraph newspaper, Mr Heappey said the UK is behind allies who have taken steps to reinforce citizens' preparedness for war.

He gave the example of Sweden, where the government has handed out a booklet explaining what to do in a time of war, including which emergency food provisions to store. Mr Heappey wrote: "It's a stark reminder that war is a...

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