(Alliance News) - UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has hailed the defence sector as offering "the next generation of good, secure, well-paid jobs", after it was announced that defence ministers will set a target for spending money with small businesses.
Officials are looking to boost the access of small and medium enterprises to Armed Forces supply chains, following the PM's announcement that defence spending would be increased to 2.5% of GDP by 2027.
Starmer and Defence Secretary John Healey met SMEs in the defence sector, apprentices and students at a careers fair hosted in Downing Street on Monday.
The PM told the Number 10 event that support will increase "investment in small firms across the whole of the UK".
He added: "For those of you that are thinking about a career in defence, in this industry, I hope the students feel inspired by what they see today, the opportunities before them and the possibilities for their own future.
"Because this isn't just about security for Britain, it's about security for working people as well.
"The next generation of good, secure, well-paid jobs and the pride and purpose of knowing your work keeps the nation safe."
Last week, the PM announced the uplift to defence spending, as well as a target for it to increase to 3% of GDP within the next parliament.
The Ministry of Defence has said that they will also launch a new "hub" for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to direct them towards defence contracts.
Some 12,000 SMEs could be supported by the plans, the department said.
Some 70% of defence spending is outside the wealthy south-east of England and London but ministers say only a small amount of this went to SMEs last year, and plan to change this.
Addressing the same event in Downing Street, Healey said in relation to the spending increase that "we want to make sure that as much of that is directed towards British firms, British jobs, British skills, British opportunities as possible, especially for small and medium-sized firms."
He later added: "What the prime minister and I are also announcing today is a determination that as we increase defence spending, as we boost the British economy in all parts of the UK with that defence investment, we will make sure that a larger share of it is directed towards small and medium-sized firms."
Starmer and Healey met staff and apprentices at a number of companies including Supacat which works in military vehicles and GW Martin, a precision-engineering firm.
By David Lynch and Caitlin Doherty, PA
source: PA
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