Vernon Coaker MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Defence, responding to the revelation that the Ministry of Defence has £2billion of unspent funds, said:

“Earlier this week, the Prime Minister snubbed our brave servicemen and women by forgetting to appoint an Armed Forces Minister. Today, careless waste in the MoD has been exposed by revelations about hundreds of thousands of pounds being squandered on calls to 118 numbers.

"Now we learn that senior military figures have grave concerns about the management of the defence budget and the ability of Ministers to take tough decisions.

"Morale amongst our troops and their families is at an all time low. Philip Hammond needs to get a grip. He looks like an out of touch Defence Secretary and confidence in his leadership is rapidly diminishing.”