# Defence Sec resigns: 'Keir can't keep Britain safe' Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/coffee-house-shots-496891/defence-sec-resigns-keir-can-t-keep-britain-safe Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/coffee-house-shots-496891/defence-sec-resigns-keir-can-t-keep-britain-safe.md Podcast: [Coffee House Shots](https://stenobird.com/podcast/coffee-house-shots-496891) Published: 2026-06-11T13:41:30+00:00 Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/coffee-house-shots/episodes/defence-sec-resigns-keir-cant-keep-britian-safe Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/68359028e1abc4be6b032cd1/e/6a2aabe0438158000bdd99d8/media.mp3?tk=eyJ0ayI6ImRlZmF1bHQiLCJhZHMiOnRydWUsInNwb25zIjp0cnVlLCJzdGF0dXMiOiJwdWJsaWMifQ==&sig=d9Y_VbM7E65U1y15qsuKuenmizKDwKl4ramIHViqXGM Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/coffee-house-shots-496891/episodes/defence-sec-resigns-keir-can-t-keep-britain-safe Duration seconds: 1001 ## Resource John Healey has resigned as Defence Secretary. In a blistering letter to the Prime Minister, he said: ‘You have been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats.’ This comes after Keir Starmer failed even to secure the derisory sum of money he had demanded from the Treasury and the cabinet to modernise Britain’s forces following the recommendations of the Strategic Defence Review. The timing is equally devastating, as Starmer is heading to the G7 summit on Monday, where he will have to face Donald Trump. So what does this mean for Starmer’s premiership? Will more resignations follow – or will the missiles turn on the Treasury and Rachel Reeves’s reluctance to cough up? And who will take on the poisoned chalice of the defence brief now? Noa Hoffman speaks to Tim Shipman and James Heale. Produced by Oscar Edmondson. Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more. For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts . Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/coffee-house-shots-496891/episodes/defence-sec-resigns-keir-can-t-keep-britain-safe/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/coffee-house-shots-496891/defence-sec-resigns-keir-can-t-keep-britain-safe.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.