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Al Carns has turned down a job in Andy Burnham’s Government over defence spending.
The former Armed Forces minister, who resigned last month after accusing Sir Keir Starmer of failing to properly fund the military, said he declined a ministerial post because “the argument I resigned over has not yet been settled”.
Mr Carns followed John Healey, the former defence secretary whom Mr Burnham appointed as Chancellor, out the door in protest over a shortfall in Sir Keir’s defence investment plan (DIP).
Military chiefs had demanded £28bn of extra funding for the Armed Forces by 2035, but the Treasury only committed to £13.5bn.
Mr Carns said in a post on X: “I had a good conversation with the Chief Whip today where she offered me a return to Government. After careful thought, I declined, with respect and with thanks.
“I resigned in June because I did not believe the defence funding on the table was adequate for the threats this country faces. I said so publicly and I still stand by every word.
“I’ve always said I would serve where I am asked. In normal circumstances, that is exactly what I would do, but the argument I resigned over has not yet been settled. To take another role now, in another department, would suggest that it has.”
Healey’s appointment ‘changes the picture’
Mr Carns continued: “Until the country is spending what it needs to spend on its own defence, my job is to keep making that case, honestly and constructively, from the back benches.
“The appointment of John Healey as Chancellor changes the picture in one important respect. John resigned for the same reasons I did. He is a man of his word and he has made it clear that he will deliver on the commitments that led him to leave government in the first place.
“The Prime Minister knows exactly what John stands for and that appointment is meaningful and I welcome it.
“The people around the Cabinet table and across Government are doing difficult jobs in a difficult moment and I will do everything I can from the back benches to help our party and country succeed. Where I believe more needs to be done, I’ll keep making that case in good faith.
“There is also serious work to be done on Northern Ireland Legacy, opportunities for young people, getting the country fitter and healthier, and I will keep pushing on all of that too. That’s the job of a backbench MP and I take it seriously.”
Mr Healey is expected to be tasked with finding billions more for the military in his new role in No 11.
When Sir Keir unveiled his defence plan, he said it equated to the “highest sustained increase” since the Cold War and would mean Britain would be prepared for war by 2030.
Within days, it emerged Mr Burnham would have to fill a £15bn deficit in the military budget after the plans unravelled.
Since entering No 10, Mr Burnham has refused to set out a timetable for spending 3 per cent of GDP on defence by 2030, which Mr Healey demanded when he resigned.
Wes Streeting, the newly appointed Defence Secretary, suggested defence spending would rise when he told reporters he believed he had a “firm friend” in Mr Healey.
In his first comments since being appointed on Tuesday, Mr Healey refused to rule out raising taxes to fund increased defence spending.
He told broadcasters that fiscal credibility was “the bedrock for economic stability and national security” and reiterated Mr Burnham’s commitment to increasing defence spending.
Mr Carns considered standing for the Labour leadership after Sir Keir resigned but eventually backed Mr Burnham.
In an interview last month, he refused to say whether he would serve in Mr Burnham’s cabinet and added: “I’ve got to see the plan.”
Starmer loyalist sacked
Mike Tapp, the Starmer loyalist Home Office minister who fell out with Shabana Mahmood, has also been sacked by Mr Burnham.
Mr Tapp said he was “disappointed” by his sacking but said he had “no regrets remaining loyal to Keir Starmer until the end”.
He had a public row with the Home Secretary last month after writing an article in The Times urging her to water down her immigration reforms.
Ms Mahmood had urged Sir Keir to fire Mr Tapp in response, but the former prime minister rebuffed her requests.
Writing on social media, Mr Tapp wished his successor the “best of luck” but said that “compassion must sit alongside firmness” in the immigration system.
“Our immigration system is also about people,” he said, adding: “That is why compassion must sit alongside firmness, striking the right balance to protect our country, support our economy, and uphold confidence in the system.”
