The Treasury has confirmed that Chancellor John Healey will not set a deadline for Britain to spend three per cent of GDP on defence in his 28 October Budget, with a decision on the timetable instead being pushed back to next year's spending review, as reported by The Guardian, GB News, and the Huffington Post.

I previously reported that Mr Healey was set to drop the 2030 target date entirely. However, while the milestone will not appear in the upcoming fiscal statement, the Treasury has declined to rule out 2030 permanently, opting instead to defer the timing decision until next year.

The move comes amid heightened international and security tensions. As reported by the Daily Telegraph, the United States has considered opposing British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands as part of a series of options drawn up by Pentagon officials to pressure Prime Minister Andy Burnham towards a five per cent NATO target. Moscow has also renewed threats against British military assets.

The delay puts Mr Healey in an awkward political position. In June, he resigned as Defence Secretary over defence funding, warning that Labour's path towards spending 2.7 per cent by 2030 left Britain exposed. At the time, he accused Sir Keir Starmer of being "unable" and the Treasury of being "unwilling" to allocate necessary funds, demanding a firm commitment to the 2030 target. His resignation helped seal Sir Keir's exit and paved the way for Mr Burnham to enter Downing Street.

Now running the Treasury, Mr Healey will use his first Budget to focus on closing a funding gap in the defence investment plan inherited from Sir Keir. Speaking to Sky News, Mr Healey defended his approach on economic grounds, saying: "Fiscal discipline has been the bedrock of the Government that I was part of for the first couple of years." A Government spokesman added that ministers remain "committed to fully funding the defence investment plan."

The shift in direction has unsettled the markets, wiping roughly £1.7 billion off the value of defence firms listed on the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250. One defence industry executive called the decision "disappointing but entirely predictable", warning that failing to commit funding leaves the country exposed to Russian threats.

Opposition figures have seized on the deferral. Shadow Defence Secretary James Cartlidge said: "Given he is now the Chancellor, it is extraordinary that he is backtracking on the very pledge which sealed the fate of the last PM and opened the door of No 10 to Andy Burnham. Russia doesn't work to Treasury timetables." Reform UK's Robert Jenrick called the administration "continuity Labour with a new face."

Procurement analysts have also cautioned that top-line targets alone are insufficient. Rory Wells, a director at Second Front Systems, said: "Three per cent of GDP will not make the UK any safer if more money simply moves through the same processes at the same speed."

A wider pathway for military spending is expected at the 2027 spending review, which is due to set out a roadmap towards Britain's NATO commitment to spend 3.5 per cent of GDP by 2035. I will be following these developments closely — check back for updates.