Preview: UK Defense Investment Plan (DIP) to be published today: Funding settlement of ~£14.5B looks to fall short of the ~£28B officia

PM Starmer announced it would be published on Tuesday, and it's being framed as one of his final acts before he stands down as PM.

The plan was originally due last year and had been held back amid wrangling within Government over the amount of money required to finance the military.

It's landing ahead of the July NATO summit.

What's been leaked / trailed ahead of publication The MoD has pre-briefed several elements to shape coverage: - Drones and autonomy - the headline figure.

Under new Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis, the DIP will focus on ramping up the UK's use of drones and autonomous weapons, funded by a £5B investment.

This is being pitched as the largest-ever UK investment in those technologies, drawing explicitly on lessons from Ukraine and the Iran conflict. - Naval shipbuilding - two procurement programmes were shared with journalists in advance: a new "common combat vessel" and new amphibious ships.

Both are expected to support an expanding UK naval shipbuilding industry, with yards at Babcock in Rosyth, BAE Systems in Barrow and Govan, and Balaena/Cammell Laird and Navantia/Harland & Wolff.

The amphibious element reportedly revives Project Catherina, a joint Anglo-Dutch programme, with smaller but better-armed ships to replace the retired Albion-class. - Air power - leaks indicate the UK will proceed with procurement of 12 nuclear-capable F-35A aircraft and continue with the Global Combat Air Programme, the sixth-generation fighter effort with Italy and Japan. - Commandos - confirmed new high-speed boats, drone and autonomous technology, and new larger amphibious transport ships to support UK Commando Force operations, aiming to create a combined fleet with the Netherlands.

The controversy underneath it - The plan is overshadowed by a funding row.

John Healey resigned as Defence Secretary after the Treasury refused to commit the resources he sought, and Armed Forces Minister Al Carns then resigned, saying the proposed plan was not "transformative enough." Healey had secured a £13.5B settlement; his replacement Dan Jarvis is said to have secured up to £14.5B - still short of the £28B officials said was needed. - The political reception is hostile across the board.

Shadow Defence Secretary James Cartlidge called it "too little, too late," noting it represents only about 2.69% of GDP by 2030 versus the 2.68% Healey resigned over.

Lib Dem leader Ed Davey called it "late and underfunded," and "unforgivable." There are also doubts it meets NATO's target of 3.5% of GDP by 2035. - One thing worth flagging: the reporting now consistently describes Starmer as outgoing, with the DIP regarded as a legacy issue before he stands down and makes way for his likely successor, Andy Burnham, whose camp has left open the possibility of revisiting the plan.

So even as it's published, its durability is openly in question