What A Conservative Victory Will Mean For The Military

After an explosive night in British politics David Cameron will be returning to Downing Street.

Not to lead a coalition but as a Prime Minister with a Conservative majority in the House of Commons.

Whilst he has met with Her Majesty the Queen and been formally invited to form the next Government, the leaders of the Liberal Democrats, UKIP and Labour have all resigned.

But what does that mean for Defence?

Over the last five years the Conservatives have presided over major cuts in defence spending, the number of military personnel falling by more than 40,000 to around 160,000. Within the British Army numbers have fallen from 102,000 to 82,000.

David Cameron has however promised that he will allow no more reductions in the size of the regular Army.

Britain currently meets its NATO membership requirement of spending 2% of GDP on defence. During campaigning however Tories refused to be drawn on whether that level of spending would be maintained.

Trident would however be maintained in its current incarnation, four submarines providing a continuous at-sea deterrent. The SNP are likely however to press hard for it to no longer be based in Scotland.

Mr Cameron has also promised to increase spending on military equipment by 1% a year in real terms right through the next parliament. 

Things will be much become much clearer when the next strategic defence and security review is undertaken at the beginning of the new parliament.

But hanging over it all is the very real prospect of a European Referendum in 2017, the result of which will shape the UK's foreign policy, and the role of the Armed Forces within it, for a generation.