Overview

• The new Home Guard, modeled on the WWII-era militia, will recruit several thousand civilian volunteers to form local defense hubs across the UK.
• Volunteers will focus on protecting key infrastructure, including nuclear power plants, telecommunications hubs, airports, and coastal undersea cable landings.
• The initiative responds to MI5's report of a 48% rise in state-sponsored threats and simulations revealing vulnerabilities in missile defense systems.
• The Strategic Defence Review also proposes public-private partnerships to fund advanced naval technology for safeguarding undersea energy pipelines and internet cables.
• The Ministry of Defence has committed to increasing defense spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027, with plans to publish the full review within weeks.