Admiral Sir Tony Radakin has welcomed the prospect of fresh funding announcements for the armed forces, stressing that additional money would be “always welcome” regardless of who occupies Downing Street. The head of the armed forces made the remark during an interview on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, where he pointed to a “big issue” that lies at the heart of the UK’s defence planning.
“That’s the big issue and whether it’s this Prime Minister or the next Prime Minister, if we get an announcement of additional money, well, we should always welcome that,” Admiral Sir Tony said.
The comments come as the Ministry of Defence grapples with a delayed Defence Investment Plan (DIP) and the aftermath of a wide‑ranging Strategic Defence Review (SDR) published in June 2025. The SDR is intended to determine the roles, capabilities and reforms needed to meet 21st‑century threats, with affordability a central requirement as the government pushes spending towards a target of 2.5% of GDP by 2027. The UK’s defence budget stood at £60.2 billion in the 2024/25 financial year, with plans to increase it to £73.5 billion by 2028/29. Ministers have also signalled ambitions to reach 3% of GDP in the next parliament.
Yet the National Audit Office has repeatedly described the Ministry of Defence’s equipment plan as “unaffordable”. The NAO identified a £16.9 billion black hole in the previous Defence Equipment Plan, raising serious doubts about the long‑term viability of major procurement programmes.
The ‘big issue’: the future of the destroyer and frigate fleet
Admiral Radakin’s reference to the “big issue” is understood to centre on the future of the Royal Navy’s surface combatant fleet. His remarks imply that plans to replace existing destroyers and frigates may be scrapped or heavily revised. Reports suggest the delayed Defence Investment Plan may no longer include funding for up to eight Type 83 destroyers or five Type 32 frigates. Instead, the navy is being urged to pivot towards a “hybrid fleet” that blends crewed warships with uncrewed and autonomous platforms, including drones.
The potential abandonment of the Type 83 destroyer programme would mean the existing Type 45 air‑defence destroyers, currently slated for retirement by the end of the 2030s, face an uncertain future without a direct replacement. The Type 45s have themselves suffered from well‑documented propulsion issues, though they remain the backbone of the Royal Navy’s anti‑air capability.
Meanwhile, the UK remains committed to building eight Type 26 frigates, designed primarily for anti‑submarine warfare. Construction is under way in Scotland, but the programme has been beset by delays and cost overruns. The initial gearbox for the first vessel, HMS Glasgow, added an extra £233 million to the project. There are also concerns about the knock‑on effect on allied programmes: Australia selected a modified Type 26 design for its own Hunter‑class frigates, and any further UK delays could have international repercussions.
The Type 31 frigate programme, intended as a lower‑cost general‑purpose replacement for the Type 23s, has also run into trouble. Babcock International, the prime contractor, took a £140 million charge on the programme because of inflationary pressures and engineering changes. The original headline price of £250 million per ship is now widely seen as unrealistic.
Questions also hang over the two Queen Elizabeth‑class aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales. Both vessels have experienced serious technical difficulties, most notably the Prince of Wales’s recurring propeller shaft problems. A major failure in August 2022 forced the carrier into extensive repairs, significantly limiting its operational availability and raising broader concerns about the Royal Navy’s maintenance record and overall readiness.
A shift towards drones and autonomous systems
Admiral Radakin has consistently argued that the UK must adapt to a rapidly changing geopolitical environment marked by the war in Europe, conflict in the Middle East, and hybrid attacks from state and non‑state actors. He has warned that current defence spending levels are inadequate and could jeopardise commitments to NATO allies. The SDR itself acknowledges these growing and diversifying threats.
The shift away from traditional destroyers and frigates towards autonomous vehicles and drones is a direct response to the emphasis on disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence and unmanned systems. The vision of a “hybrid fleet” reflects a recognition that peer‑on‑peer naval conflict may in future be fought with swarms of drones rather than large, expensive surface combatants. But the transition comes at a time when the MoD’s equipment plan is already under severe financial strain, and the delay of the Defence Investment Plan has left industry and the Royal Navy in a state of uncertainty.
The implications of Admiral Radakin’s intervention are far‑reaching. If the destroyer and frigate replacement programmes are indeed shelved, it would mark the most significant reorientation of the Royal Navy’s surface fleet in a generation, with profound consequences for shipbuilding jobs, export orders, and the UK’s ability to project maritime power alongside allies.
