Whilst the government says the spring budget is about security and renewal, in reality it is about doubling down on failed and dangerous policies of war and austerity. The budget will make the population poorer, particularly the most vulnerable in our society. It will fail to keep us secure, instead dragging us towards greater threats of war and the catastrophic use of nuclear weapons.
The government’s decision to increase military spending by £2.2 billion from April, will see a total increase of £5.1bn on war and nuclear weapons since the Autumn Statement in October 2024. This puts military spending at 2.36% of GDP.
At the same time the government is making devastating cuts to vital benefits for disabled people, and plans further public sector cuts. When food banks are overwhelmed, public services are crumbling, NHS waiting lists are at record highs, and families are drowning in debt, the government’s obsession with militarisation shows that it is morally bankrupt.
Billions on nuclear while the country crumbles
The government is also spending billions on its nuclear weapons system – which is driving nuclear threats and draining our public finances. The ten-year budget for this weapons system has ballooned by £38.2 billion in just one year, pushing the total estimated cost of Britain’s nuclear weapons to at least £99.5 billion. That’s £9.95 billion every year—nearly £10 billion annually—wasted on weapons of mass destruction that risk people and planet.
Instead of spending this money on weapons that can never be used without catastrophic consequences, the government could instead use this £10 billion every year to:
- Make Winter Fuel Allowance universal, ensuring all pensioners don’t freeze to death in their own homes – costing £1.5 billion
- Lift over a quarter of a million children out of poverty by lifting the Child Benefit Cap – costing £2.5 billion
- Halt cuts to benefits for disabled people, including Personal Independence Payments (PIP) – costing £5 billion
General Secretary Sophie Bolt said:
“Far from this budget being about renewal it is about drastically reducing people’s life chances and eroding our public services even further. This is not ‘investment in security’—it is a direct attack on the most vulnerable in our society and a cruel political choice. Spending billions on nuclear weapons is taking food from children’s mouths, forcing pensioners to freeze in their homes and destroying the dignity and independence of disabled people.”
“The government’s fixation on nuclear weapons and military spending represents a betrayal of the people it claims to serve. Halting these obscene hikes in military spending and scrapping Britain’s nuclear weapons could transform our society, financing renewable energy projects, rebuilding our public services, and building affordable homes.”
Photo credit: Kirsty O’Connor / Treasury