British governments are more than willing to slash the defence budget but then are more than willing to ask the military to perform minor miracles. The Royal Navy has been slashed to the bone since the 1990s; the lack of ships and equipment is clear for all to see. But this week the British government ordered three ships to be stationed in the Pacific to enforce United Nations sanctions against North Korea and British nuclear submarines are said to be on standby to strike Syria. This is on top of all the other deployments which the Royal Navy already has from keeping home waters clear of Russian submarines to maintaining a military presence in the Persian Gulf and the Falkland Islands. And it must be remembered that a defence review is under way at the moment which could see the Royal Navy losing even more ships.
It is evident that the British government needs the British armed forces, so rather than reducing spending on the military perhaps it should be increased. If this is not the case then the British government should forget about the British military having a role on the world stage. One of the biggest ships in the Royal Navy, the assault ship Albion, has been sent to the Far East; just three months ago it was rumoured that it would be scrapped. There does appear to have been a change of heart within the British government. No deep military cuts, because you can't have armed forces on the cheap.