New: Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has won his titanic battle with the Chancellor to secure an above inflation rise for the MoD's budget. This, despite defence being seen as a department about to be gutted in next week’s Spending Review to repair the £300bn covid deficit (1)

Instead, the opposite has happened, after Boris Johnson’s firm intervention on Wallace’s side. Means costly equipment programmes can go ahead, as can the major tech overhaul, and there will be no need for big troop cuts (2)

PM persuaded by 1. Job creation - lots of drones and AI to be built, 2. New threats make it necessary, 3. Useful red meat to angry Tory backbenchers who need appeasing. Small print still being haggled over with HMT, but the MoD's uplift in the region of £15bn over 4 years (3)

Means Tories are meeting if not exceeding their 2019 manifesto commitment to increase defence spending by at least inflation + 0.5% per year. Other ministries forced to accept 1 year settlements after the Chx cancelled the 4 year CSR. But how willl it all be paid for? (4)

Dropping aid spending down to 0.5% of GNI next year (breaching the UK's G7 commitment for the 1st time) will raise around £4bn, or one year’s cash. A lot more needed from tax rises/cuts elsewhere in future years. Intriguingly, I’m also told Joe Biden may have played a part (5)

In their first call a week ago, the PM promised the President Elect he wanted to strengthen the UK’s role on the international stage, to Biden’s delight. That can only mean carrying a big stick (copyright, Theodore Roosevelt). More on @TimesRadio just after 7am tomorrow (6)