Former army officer Dan Jarvis has been appointed the United Kingdom’s new Defence Secretary following the sudden resignation of John Healey, amid growing tensions within Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government over defence spending.

Jarvis, who previously served as a junior security minister in the Home Office, steps into the role at a politically sensitive moment as questions mount over the government’s long-term military funding plans.

Healey resigned on Thursday, just hours before Jarvis’s appointment was announced, in a move widely seen as a setback for Starmer’s administration. In his resignation letter, Healey accused the government of failing to commit sufficient funding to national defence and warned that the proposed Defence Investment Plan (DIP) risked making Britain “less safe.”

The long-awaited defence strategy, which is expected to set out military spending priorities over the next decade, has yet to be published despite repeated delays. Healey’s departure adds pressure on the government ahead of a key by-election that could further test Starmer’s leadership.

Responding to the resignation, Prime Minister Keir Starmer defended his government’s approach, insisting the forthcoming defence plan would enable the armed forces to modernise and strengthen their capabilities. “I will always do what is needed to keep our country safe,” he said in a letter addressed to Healey.

The government has pledged to release the Defence Investment Plan ahead of the NATO summit scheduled for July 7 in Turkey, where defence spending and security commitments are expected to dominate discussions among allies.

Healey’s exit and Jarvis’s swift appointment highlight growing political pressure within the government over national security priorities at a time of heightened global instability.