The Treasury has issued more details of proposed cuts to fund more spending on defence, including £800 million from the Department for Transport budget.

In a policy paper entitled “The Defence Investment Plan Funding explainer“, the cuts will be made between now and 2030, with £100 million less spending in 2026-27, then cuts of £200 million for the next two years and a further £300 million in 2029-30.

Given that two major projects in RIS3, the Lower Thames Crossing and A66 dualling project, are both more than £1 billion, it’s possible smaller projects such as the A46 Newark bypass (pictured), the M60 Simister Island or the A38 Derby junctions could be affected, although this remains speculation at present.

Outgoing Prime Minster Sir Kier Starmer stated in his speech his decisions are about “taking the necessary choices, the right choices, to protect our nation. It is because we have taken these hard-edged decisions that we are able to increase our spending on defence.”

Other cuts include reducing departmental capital budgets by one per cent, asset sales, ongoing international objectives, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero savings and more budget cuts in the next budget.

Responding to the news, David Giles, Chair of the Asphalt Industry Alliance said: “It is disappointing that capital funding for new road projects looks set to be cut, but it is vital that the Government honours the pledge made today to protect funding for local authorities to carry out much needed road maintenance and pothole repairs.

“We understand that in an increasingly challenging world tough public funding decisions must be made. However, local roads in England and Wales are already in a woeful condition and face a backlog of repairs that now stands at a whopping £18.62 billion[1].

“All services depend on our local roads. That’s why the Government must ensure that its £7.3 billion commitment to 2030 to support repairs and prevent further decline is fully delivered and is not diverted elsewhere.”

(Picture – Mapillary)