Conservative leadership hopeful Kemi Badenoch calls on Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and other Labour leadership candidates to reduce welfare spending and use the savings to increase defence spending, Sky News reports. The message comes during scrutiny of the parties’ positions on national security and public finances at PMQs, where Badenoch and Labour trade arguments about how much the UK should spend on defence. According to the coverage cited, Badenoch urges Labour figures to prioritise defence by cutting welfare, framing the changes as a way to redirect resources rather than adding new costs. The reporting also describes a clash at PMQs involving Badenoch and Starmer over defence spending, highlighting their disagreement on the scale and direction of funding. The Telegraph’s account adds that Badenoch addresses Labour leadership rivals as well as Starmer directly, setting out a proposed trade-off between welfare expenditure and defence investment. Across the sources, the central points are Badenoch’s call for welfare cuts and her argument that the resulting funds should go to defence.