“We have abandoned our people.” Mercer is sacked – and accuses Johnson of letting down Northern Ireland veterans.

“I have fought and bled alongside them…and I have a duty to stand alongside them.”

Nicolas Clark: The Government’s defence plans are based on a stark choice – ‘go large’ or ‘go smart’

Even if a large conventional military suited Britain’s needs, the public is not prepared to pay for one.

Andrew Gimson’s PMQs sketch: Davies wonders whether the Prime Minister is a Conservative

Starmer attacked Johnson for promising not to cut the size of the Army, yet now doing exactly that.

Defence and security. Having tilted towards the Indo-Pacific, we need a tilt back to Europe

Wallace has done well to win an exceptional defence settlement, but it may not be enough to fund all the Integrated Review’s ambitions.

Garvan Walshe: The Integrated Review’s tilt to Asia could leave us vulnerable closer to home – and Putin

The impulse of Brexit is to prove Britain’s openness by striking out, but this tilt increases our security dependence on Europe.

James Sunderland: The Integrated Review. To project power in the world, we musn’t skimp on support arms and force protection

And if that projection is to be effective, we will need to invest in our operating bases – and not just at traditional sites.

Sarah Ingham: The Duchess, the Queen – and that Oprah interview. It’s time for Johnson to step in.

Reports that the former brought pressure to bear on ITV are alarming. Can we look forward to a new series – Britain’s Got Feudalism?

James Sunderland: The Armed Forces have risen to the challenges of Covid. Parliament must not waste this opportunity to repay them.

The delay to the review, historic increases to defence spending and rumoured cuts to troop numbers paint a picture of an organisation in flux.

The Good Union

The Union needs a cultural case to walk in step with the material one – Project Love, not Project Fear. Which means looking to the future.

Andrew Bowie: That weekend poll and Scotland’s future. Until we start to call ourselves British, why should anyone else?

The only institutions I can think of that retain the term ‘British’ are the BBC and the British Army – and, in Scotland, its Twitter handle is @ArmyScotland.

Does cross-party support for the Mali mission signal a new consensus on deploying troops overseas?

British regular soldiers will be on the ground in a new theatre for the first time since Iraq – and Labour are fully on board.

John Healey: Ministers have a democratic duty to explain the role of British combat troops in Mali

It should remain a basic principle that no Government commits British troops into a conflict zone before a full statement in the Commons.

Protecting British troops may be Johnson’s next clash with his ‘rule of law’ opponents

The post-war system of international law is constantly evolving – it is inevitable, and justified, for government attitudes and approaches to evolve in turn.

Daniel Hannan: Does the army really still need tanks? Or the navy aircraft carriers? Or the rest of us, the Trident system?

Let’s have a no-holds-barred strategic review which asks how we can best defend our interests given the vertiginous acceleration of military technology.

Allan Mallinson: What is the army for?

The Cabinet Office’s Review will ask complex questions about its purpose. But a straightforward one may be the place to start.