She told The Telegraph that she wanted defence spending to be three per cent of GDP by the end of the decade – far above the current Nato target of two per cent. The UK is currently spending around 2.3 per cent of GDP on defence. Her target would involve spending tens of billions of pounds more on defence. Ms Truss referenced the Russian invasion of Ukraine to justify the need to increase. The move also goes well beyond the position of Rishi Sunak, the former chancellor, who has the most support from fellow MPs in the contest so far. He has failed to promise a defence spending increase. Ms Truss also confirmed that she would continue Boris Johnson’s policy of deporting some migrants who arrived in the UK illegally to Rwanda, saying she “completely” backs the drive. During the speech, Ms Truss pushed the argument that she is better placed to run the economy than either Mr Sunak or Penny Mordaunt, the trade minister, who has the second most support from MPs. Ms Truss is third. “Now is the time to be bold. We cannot have business-as-usual economic management which has led us to low growth for decade after decade,” Ms Truss said, in a swipe at Mr Sunak. She later added: “I have a plan to make Britain a high-growth economy over the next ten years through bold supply-side reform. “We will cut taxes to help businesses invest in their future, tackle the cost of energy, and control government spending.” She also stressed her electability versus the other candidates. Ms Truss said: “Let me be clear, Labour is beatable. The Liberals are beatable. There isn’t a great groundswell of support for Sir Keir Starmer or Sir Ed Davey. “But the British people are crying out for a united and modern Conservative Government ready with the courage of its convictions to deliver on its promises. “So my friends, you can trust me to get the economy growing, get money back in people’s pockets and help squeezed families. “Together, we will level up the country in a Conservative way … making it an aspiration nation.”
