It's a critical time for the MoD - so who is Defence Secretary John Healey?


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Mar 06 2025 17 mins   68
After just eight months in his role, Defence Secretary John Healey is dealing with one of the most challenging in-trays in the cabinet.

He is meeting US counterpart Pete Hegseth in Washington on Thursday, as he works to bridge the gap on how to reach a Ukraine peace deal.

On today’s podcast, Niall Paterson talks to ex-armed forces minister James Heappey who worked with Healey when he was in opposition, and to Malcolm Chalmers who focuses on UK defence and security at the think-tank RUSI about the challenges the defence secretary faces.

Producer: Soila Apparicio
Assistant producer: Millie Gibson
Editor: Wendy Parker