'Your priorities are wrong!' Labour MP handed fiery GB News grilling in Defence Investment Plan row

Labour MP Peter Kyle has been scolded in a fiery GB News grilling after assuring that the current Defence Investment Plan will be the "right plan" for Britain's defences.

The Business and Trade Secretary clashed with host Anne Diamond as he defended the still unpublished plan amid the "challenging, historic and very important moment in our countries defensive period".

Hitting back at Mr Kyle, Anne argued: "The former Defence Secretary John Healey had no faith in the plan and what it was promising, and he was a man of integrity and a great deal of experience.

"If it's not good enough for him, why is it good enough for Dan Jarvis unless there are major changes?"

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Mr Kyle responded: "We've committed to publishing the plan before the Nato summit, that is in just a couple of weeks time and it will be published at that point or certainly before that point.

"So Dan is coming at the point where the plan is being finalised. I know he will be hard at work now and using all of his experience as a major in the Parachute Regiment in order to make sure that this plan is the right plan."

The Labour MP highlighted how the Government has fulfilled their "promise to spend 2.5 per cent on defence by 2030 years ahead of the end of this Parliament".

He declared: "We will get by the early next stages of the next Parliament to three per cent and then 3.5 per cent by 2035."

Pushing back on Mr Kyle's argument, host Stephen Dixon questioned whether the Labour Government has "got its priorities wrong".

He told the MP: "John Healey was particularly annoyed about was the fact that it was falling approximately £4.5billion short of what he said was absolutely necessary.

"It's interesting that last night you announced £4.5billion to spend over the next five years on cycle and walking investment strategy. You've got your priorities wrong, haven't you?"

Mr Kyle disagreed, telling GB News: "No, we've invested £270 billion pounds over the course of this Parliament. Now Government can do more than two things at the same time, and we've also increased investment into the NHS. I don't think your viewers would want us not to do that.

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"Of course the number one duty of a Government is to invest in our defence service and make sure it's fit for purpose, and I'm not going to apologise for making sure that we strive to make sure this money is appropriate and the plan is appropriate.

"Too many times in the past we've had defence projects that have gone over budget, they've come in years late, they have been poorly managed and they have not been delivered appropriately for the times that we were living in.

"We are not going to allow that to happen, we have to take a little bit more time to get this right."

Interjecting Mr Kyle, Stephen argued: "Except that's the exact opposite of what your former Armed Forces Minister Al Carns has said.

"He says the Defence Investment Plan prepared for the last war, not the next war?"

The Labour MP responded: "Well, wait for this plan to come out, I'm very dedicated to your viewership and I will come back. Wait till the plan is finalised and it is released, it is laid before Parliament.

"This plan will be scrutinised by Parliament, it will be scrutinised by the media but most importantly of all, it will be scrutinised by the people serving in our armed forces and the people of our country. It will be out soon and I'll be out here available because you know how dedicated I am to your viewers."

Dismissing Mr Kyle's "dedication" to GB News viewers, Anne made clear that the British people are "very worried at the moment" that we "have a Prime Minister who has just lost his Defence Secretary and every former head of the British forces seems to be coming out and saying we cannot defend our country".

Mr Kyle concluded: "We've come into office on a period where armed forces had been laid bare by some of the decisions made previously. You can't turn these things around overnight, but we got straight down to it.

"You see a Government that is delivering for our armed forces, delivering for our defence and security and nothing will take us away from that purpose."

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