How is it John Healey’s once unyielding demand for 3% of GDP on defence can suddenly wait now he’s Chancellor?

Chancer-lor? JOHN Healey was hailed as a man of principle when he quit as Defence Secretary over the failure to boost funding for Britain’s hollowed-out Armed Forces. His bombshell resignation dealt a mortal blow to Sir Keir Starmer just a week before the crucial by-election that put Andy Burnham in pole position to steal his crown. Now he is Chancellor, John Healey’s once unyielding demand for three per cent of GDP on defence can suddenly wait — raising serious questions about where his principles have gone Credit: PA In his letter of resignation, Healey accused PM Keir Starmer of making Britain less safe and blasted the Treasury for refusing to stump up more cash for defence Credit: Getty In a farewell blast, he accused the lame-duck PM of making the country less safe amid “rising threats” and lambasted the Treasury for being “unwilling” to stump up the cash. But three months on he’s changed his tune. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! The threats facing Britain haven’t disappeared. Nor has the need for stronger defences. The only thing that has changed is Mr Healey’s job. READ MORE FROM THE SUN SAYS Now he is Chancellor, responsible for making the Treasury sums add up, his principles have gone out of the window. His once unyielding demand that Britain must spend three per cent of GDP on defence by 2030 can suddenly wait. And when it comes to tackling the ballooning £334billion welfare bill, that has been put on hold until next year. You can hear the clatter of political cans being kicked down the road. Most read in The Sun Baffled defence chiefs will rightly ask whether harsh economic reality has finally dawned on Mr Healey now he occupies the Treasury hot seat. Or if his much-hailed resignation was little more than a cynical and shameless act of theatre? Pump action BRITAIN’S motorists are feeling more pain at the pumps, with the cost of petrol at a four-year high. For hard-working families, every fill-up is another blow to the household budget. With energy bills and food costs soaring, the prospect of losing the 5p-a-litre fuel duty cut in January spells more misery for many Britons. Millions rely on their cars to get to work, shop and care for loved ones. They need help — not another tax grab. The PM promised to give us all some “breathing space” from rising living costs. He should remind the Chancellor of this — and The Sun’s fuel duty campaign — ahead of his Budget in October. And tell him to KEEP IT DOWN. Off the rails NOBODY should face profane or abusive behaviour while doing their job. That message is often heard over the public address system at major railway stations. Yet staff are being assaulted in growing numbers, while the chance of offenders facing justice is shrinking. Court backlogs may explain the collapse but they do not excuse it. Railworkers are entitled to protection and victims deserve justice. 1 comment1