Royal Navy ‘underfunded’, says shadow defence secretary as UK strikes Houthi group

The Royal Navy is “hollowed out and underfunded,” the shadow defence secretary has suggested.

Speaking on Friday morning (12 January), after the UK and US launched targeted strikes against military facilities used by Houthi rebels in Yemen, John Healey shared his worries over the resources available to the armed forces.

“The former defence secretary told me in the House of Commons, he admitted that over the last 13 years, the government has hollowed out and underfunded the forces,” he said.

“It is important that we are able [to] - as we have in recent weeks in the Red Sea and wider region - act alongside allies.”