Oil, arms, pharma, Israel: the cut welfare to fund war folks have interesting affiliations

Establishment figures want more money for war. Recent days have seen government ministers, ex-ministers and generals all demanding welfare is cut to fund massive hikes to ‘defence’ budgets. Turns out they’re all linked to Israel, oil, arms and private healthcare. Quelle surprise, hey?

War hawks gather

The Canary reported on 15 April that UK PM and Chief Silly-Bum of Britainshire-upon-Thames Keir Starmer was under pressure to hike military budgets. The authors of the 2025 Strategic Defence Review were among the most vocal critics. These include former Labour defence minister Lord Robertson and ex-British army general Richard Barrons.

Now, Thatcherite Labour health minister Wes Streeting chipped in as well. Turns out these figures have a links to various lobby groups across issues like pharmaceutical and the arms trade. Barrons said on 15 April that US defence chief Pete Hegseth was right that the Royal Navy was a shadow of itself.

Like many others I hung my head in sorrow. But I couldn’t argue with him because although the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force and the army are, in their bones, outstanding institutions, they are simply too small and too undernourished to deal with the world that we we now live in. And the review says this.

Lord Robertson, in a major 15 April speech, said that Starmer is:

not willing to make the necessary investment.

Funnily enough that money, Robertson said, should be squeezed out of the less well-off:

We cannot defend Britain with an ever-expanding welfare budget.

Classic.

Corrosive complacency

Robertson announced:

There is a corrosive complacency today in Britain’s political leadership. Lip service is paid to the risks, the threats, the bright red signals of danger – but even a promised national conversation about defence can’t be started.

He also accused “non-military experts in the Treasury” of “vandalism”. Which sounds like a pitch for more military control of the economy.

The BBC reported:

Lord Robertson’s apparent suggestion that the government could find money by reducing the welfare bill may be one that is shared by the Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

Pressed on the matter in an LBC interview, working class cosplayer Streeting said:

Yes, we do need to put more money into defence, we will need more, that’s the reality of the challenge we face.

Pressed on where it would come from, he said:

We definitely want to reduce the welfare budget. It’s for the Chancellor to set out her budgets, I want to make sure I stay in my lane.

Pressured further he told the channel:

It’s got to come from somewhere.

So why not already vulnerable disabled people who are already struggling to live, eh Wes?

Talk about pulling the ladder up, Streeting…

Big Pharma and arms trade links

Now we come to it… the great grift of our times. Let’s start with Barrons, who is co-chair of Universal Defence and Security Solutions (UDSS).

Here’s what UDSS has to say about itself:

UDSS is a leader in not only the delivery of practical advice and service in all areas of defence and security but also in the thinking and execution of digital age Defence and Security Transformation, including applied cyber.

A man with a vested interest in defence spending, in short…

NATO chief and BP advisor

How about Lord Robertson who once headed NATO? Well, Lord Robertson is a ‘senior counselor‘ at the US-based Cohen Group. The Cohen Group assists:

aerospace and defense firms on policy, business development and transactions. We have helped firms from the US, Canada, UK, Europe, Turkey, Israel, GCC, India, Southeast Asia, and Japan to succeed in North America, Europe, the Middle East, India, Latin America, East Asia, and Southeast Asia.

They have:

assisted clients to compete for and win tens of billions of dollars in contracts, to enter new international markets, to build joint venture and other partnerships overseas, and to move up the supply chain.

Another man with an interest in defence spending increases them? Cohen Group also helps out energy firms. Which is lucky… because Robertson is an advisor to the CEO of British Petroleum. Delightful.

One-way Streeting

How about Streeting? Well, it’s no secret that as health secretary Streeting has been a strident advocate of privatising the NHS down to the last doorknob. That may have something to do with his profound links to private healthcare firms… but who can say?

These links are probably best demonstrated by this popular breakdown, in this case tweeted by Streeting’s nemesis Green Party leader Zack Polanski:

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Wes Streeting having the chutzpah to tell the story about the NHS.

He doesn't tell the bit about how much he's accepted from private healthcare and the risk our NHS is at under this Labour Government.

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And most of all, lots of questions about his meetings with Palantir.#BBCQT pic.twitter.com/r51e5dojEd

— Zack Polanski (@ZackPolanski) March 19, 2026

Streeting has also received tens of thousands of pound from the Israel lobby, according to this report by our pals at Declassified UK. The report notes that:

Streeting became the first member of Keir Starmer’s shadow cabinet to visit Israel, in a move designed to signal a break with Jeremy Corbyn’s pro-Palestine position.

The trip was paid for by, you guessed it… our old chums at Labour Friends of Israel (LFI).

When a group of establishment drones want to cut welfare to fund militarism and war, the first question you must always ask is: whose pocket are you in? That is certainly worth asking of this gaggle of wrong ‘uns, as it turns out. A little scrutiny links them directly to some of the most obnoxious interests around: from private healthcare and the arms industry, through to Israel lobbyists and global energy giants.

They must think we’re bloody fools or something…

Featured image via the Canary

By Joe Glenton

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