Today, Laura’s been trying to get answers from Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones, about when the UK Government will meet its target of spending 2.5% of GDP on defence. Laura and James are joined by Henry to discuss possible points of difference between the Treasury and the UK chief of defence Admiral Sir Tony Radakin - who told Laura he wants ‘resources’ to match ‘ambitions’. And, did Laura have the next British Ambassador to the US sitting on her panel? You can join our Newscast online community here: https://tinyurl.com/newscastcommunityhere
 
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.Newscast brings you daily analysis of the latest political news stories from the BBC. It was presented by Laura Kuenssberg and James Cook. It was made by Miranda Slade with Anna Harris. The technical producer was Johnny Hall. The assistant editor is Chris Gray. The editor is Sam Bonham

Today, Laura’s been trying to get answers from Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones, about when the UK Government will meet its target of spending 2.5% of GDP on defence. Laura and James are joined by Henry to discuss possible points of difference between the Treasury and the UK chief of defence Admiral Sir Tony Radakin - who told Laura he wants ‘resources’ to match ‘ambitions’. And, did Laura have the next British Ambassador to the US sitting on her panel? You can join our Newscast online community here: https://tinyurl.com/newscastcommunityhere 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. Newscast brings you daily analysis of the latest political news stories from the BBC. It was presented by Laura Kuenssberg and James Cook. It was made by Miranda Slade with Anna Harris. The technical producer was Johnny Hall. The assistant editor is Chris Gray. The editor is Sam Bonham

Is The UK Spending Enough on Defence?

The BBC's daily news podcast, Newscast dives into the day's biggest news stories so you're never out of your depth.Newscast picks the brains of BBC News experts so you're ready if someone picks yours, covering the latest news, developments in politics in Westminster and beyond.Newscast is hosted by trusted politics and news journalists including Adam Fleming, BBC Political Editor Chris Mason, Laura Kuenssberg and Paddy O'Connell. 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.Catch Newscast seven-days a week and watch on BBC One at 23:40 on Thursday night or later on BBC iPlayer. GET IN TOUCH:
You can join our Newscast online community here: https://bbc.in/newscastdiscord
Send us a message or voicenote via WhatsApp to 03301239480
Email Newscast@bbc.co.uk
Or use the hashtag #BBCNewscastYou can register for Castfest tickets here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/showsandtours/shows/castfest-2026

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The BBC's daily news podcast, Newscast dives into the day's biggest news stories so you're never out of your depth. Newscast picks the brains of BBC News experts so you're ready if someone picks yours, covering the latest news, developments in politics in Westminster and beyond. Newscast is hosted by trusted politics and news journalists including Adam Fleming, BBC Political Editor Chris Mason, Laura Kuenssberg and Paddy O'Connell. 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. Catch Newscast seven-days a week and watch on BBC One at 23:40 on Thursday night or later on BBC iPlayer. GET IN TOUCH: You can join our Newscast online community here: https://bbc.in/newscastdiscord Send us a message or voicenote via WhatsApp to 03301239480 Email Newscast@bbc.co.uk Or use the hashtag #BBCNewscast You can register for Castfest tickets here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/showsandtours/shows/castfest-2026

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Is The UK Spending Enough on Defence?

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