Starmer faces PMQs bearpit after blindsiding Burnham with £5bn 'unexploded bomb' in defence plans… making tax hikes even more likely

By JAMES TAPSFIELD, UK POLITICAL EDITOR Published: 08:20, 1 July 2026 | Updated: 08:21, 1 July 2026 Keir Starmer faces a PMQs bearpit today after blindsiding Andy Burnham with a near-£5billion 'unexploded bomb' in new defence plans. The premier is due in the Commons amid an outcry over the long-awaited investment package - with critics warning the £15billion funding boost over four years is 'too little too late'. But it has emerged that the source of £4.7billion of the cash will only be decided at the next Budget, by which time Mr Burnham will almost certainly be PM. Billions of pounds more will come from cuts to other departments, many of which have not been defined.   The IFS think-tank warned that tax rises or curbs to services are inevitable to meet the costs. Mr Burnham was briefed on the Defence Investment Plan - DIP - but does not seem to have learned of the funding gap until yesterday, when a Treasury document was released. The PM and Rachel Reeves congratulated each other as they announced the plan at a drone factory in Maidenhead yesterday Burnham was briefed on the Defence Investment Plan - DIP - but does not seem to have learned of the funding gap until yesterday, when a Treasury document was released Your browser does not support iframes. The Ministry of Defence must also find £10.7billion in efficiency cuts to help fund the package, and crucially no date has been set for military spending reaching 3 per cent of GDP. It is meant to hit 3.5 per cent by 2035.  Touring broadcast studios this morning, armed forces minister Luke Pollard insisted the £4.7billion gap was 'not unusual'. He told Times Radio: 'The £15billion extra spending power that we now have with the Treasury set out how £10billion or so of that will be spent by asking other departments to cut their capital funding by 1p in the pound and transfer that money to defence. '£4.7billion will be set out at the autumn budget, and that's not unusual for governments to do.' He said the just over £1billion extra a year needed would come from the Treasury's financial headroom 'or any other measures that they seek to do in making spending decisions', saying it was 'standard practice'. He also conceded that the DIP delayed improvements to housing for armed forces families. 'A small amount of the money in the defence housing budget has been moved into the next parliament so we could prioritise the military readiness for our forces now. That was the right tough decision that we've taken.' Allies of Mr Burnham had tried to stop the DIP being released before Sir Keir hands over to his successor, likely to be on July 20.  The PM and Rachel Reeves congratulated each other as they announced the plan at a drone factory in Maidenhead yesterday. Sir Keir insisted the proposals were the 'right choice for the country', but admitted they would mean some road and energy projects being scrapped - something that immediately triggered objections from one minister whose constituency could be affected. The premier took thinly-concealed swipes at Mr Burnham by dismissing the idea of 'defence bonds' to underwrite funding, as well as efforts to curb the Treasury's power.   Ms Reeves delivered her own valedictory statement, referring to the little-understood 'Secur-o-nomics' conceit from her 'two years as Chancellor'. They did not mention John Healey, the former defence secretary who quit after only being offered around £13.5billion.  In one awkward moment suggesting his mind is on the World Cup, Sir Keir called a question from 'Sky Sports' instead of 'Sky News'.  The UK only has 'ambition' of defence spending reaching 3 per cent of GDP in the 2030s But Mr Healey, who quit the Cabinet earlier this month after bitter wrangling with the Treasury, insisted the £15billion package over four years would not keep the country safe from rising threats.  Labour's Defence Committee chair Tan Dhesi said it was 'disappointing' there was no timetable for pushing spending to 3 per cent of GDP, let alone the 3.5 per cent Donald Trump is demanding.  Sir Keir is still facing a bruising showdown with Donald Trump at the Nato summit next week, as the president has been demanding higher spending on defence. No comments have so far been submitted. 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