‘Austerity by stealth’ as Truss's defence boost comes at a cost

Malcolm Chalmers, deputy director general of RUSI, said Ms Truss’s “sustained commitment” on defence spending will have “to be met from more tax or less spending”. “You can’t borrow that on a sustained basis year after year, so that’s a big deal. My instinct would be you can't get to this without some significant increase in taxes.”