Why Has Defence Secretary John Healey Resigned?

Why Has Defence Secretary John Healey Resigned?

From Newscast by BBC News

June 11, 2026 · 31 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the resignation of UK Defence Secretary John Healey and its implications for the government.

Today, the UK Defence Secretary John Healey has resigned. In his resignation letter to the PM, Healey set out his reasons for leaving, telling the PM the defence investment plan "falls well short of what is required for defence and the country at this dangerous time”. The sixth minister to resign for Starmer’s cabinet in a month, and one of its most loyal, the question will now turn to what lies ahead for the PM. Adam and Chris are joined by Shashank Joshi Defence Editor of the Economist You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Newscast”. It works on most smart speakers. You can join our Newscast online community here: https://bbc.in/newscastdiscord Get in touch with Newscast by emailing newscast@bbc.co.uk or send us a WhatsApp on +44 0330 123 9480. New episodes released every day. If you're in the UK, for more News and Current Affairs podcasts from the BBC, listen on BBC Sounds: https://bbc.in/4guXgXd Newscast brings you daily analysis of the latest political news stories from the BBC. The presenter was Adam Fleming. It was made by Jack Maclaren with Anna Harris and Gabriel Purcell-Davis. The social producer was…

People in this episode

Hosts: Adam Fleming, Chris Gray

Guest: Shashank Joshi

Topics covered

  • defence
  • politics
  • resignation
  • UK government
  • current affairs

Keywords

  • John Healey
  • resignation
  • defence investment
  • UK politics
  • Starmer's cabinet

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: BBC News, Economist, Starmer’s cabinet

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