Oral Answers to Questions

Joshua Reynolds Excerpts

Wednesday 1st July 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend always speaks her mind! [Laughter.] I join her in thanking our people. I am proud that during my tenure, we have delivered five major trade deals, led the coalition of the willing to support Ukraine, strengthened the NATO alliance, built stronger partnerships with the EU and kept us out of the war in Iran. I thank my hon. Friend for the contribution that she made as a Minister in the Foreign Office.

[Mr Joshua Reynolds (Maidenhead) (LD)]

Q12. Yesterday the Prime Minister visited Maidenhead to announce his new defence investment plan. However, we now know that he is leaving it to his successor to decide how to fund the majority of it. We cannot fund our armed forces without growth, and we cannot get growth in Britain without dismantling the red tape that businesses face and trading closer with our closest neighbours. Does the Prime Minister agree we can properly fund our forces with a new growth and defence partnership with Europe, and will he urge his successor to drop Labour’s red lines to get it done?

[The Prime Minister]

The hon. Member obviously did not pay as much attention as he should have to what I said yesterday on the plan, the capability, the record investment that we are putting in and how we are funding it. I do agree that we need to work more closely with the EU on defence and security, as well as on trade and the economy. That is precisely what we agreed at the EU-UK summit last year, and we have been building on that. I am proud to say that in the last two years, the relationship between the UK and the EU has been transformed into a much better, trusted relationship. It is very important that, as Prime Minister, I leave the country in a better state than I found it, and I do.