Armed Forces Minister James Heappey has just laid down the gauntlet for Prime Minister Hunt: abandon the commitment to 3% of GDP on defence spending by 2030, and both Heappey and Wallace will quit. Wallace briefed out the same threat himself over the weekend. Given Hunt last night warned suitably “scary” cuts are coming in his Halloween mini-budget, losing the two Ministers at the top of the MoD might give pause for thought. Maybe…

Speaking this morning to Nick Ferrari, Heappey was unambiguous:

Ferrari: … Does the Government still support the 3% lift of GDP on defence spending by 2030?

Heappey: Yes.

Ferrari: [Ben Wallace] says he would quit if that were changed, would you join him?

Heappey: Yeah… but no one’s said, Nick, that 3% isn’t going to happen by 2030.

True, although what people say and what actually happens are often two different things. Just ask Kwasi…