David Cameron was facing a growing Tory mutiny over defence spending last night, amid claims the Foreign Secretary said there were ‘no votes in defence.’ Conservative MPs are plotting a major rebellion next week when the Commons debates calls for the UK to honour its commitment to spend at least two per cent of national income on defence. The Prime Minister lectured other Western leaders over the need to hit the target during last year’s Nato summit in Wales. Conservative MPs are plotting a rebellion against Prime Minister David Cameron next week when the Commons debate will call for the UK to honour its commitment to spend at least 2% of its income on defence . But Mr Cameron has refused to guarantee that the spending pledge will continue after the election, and – to the anger of many MPs – Tory sources say it will not feature in the party’s manifesto. Instead, the Prime Minister has said only that a future Tory government would protect the defence equipment budget and maintain troop numbers. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond was yesterday reported to have warned Tory MPs there are ‘no votes in defence’. Aides to Mr Hammond, a former defence secretary, said they ‘did not recognise the comments’, adding that the minister is a staunch supporter of defence spending. But former defence minister Sir Gerald Howarth said the reported comments were symptomatic of the view of the party leadership. Sir Gerald, MP for Aldershot, said: ‘There is a view at the top of the government – I don’t think the Prime Minister shares it – that defence isn’t a vote winner. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond (pictured) was reported to have warned Tory MPs there are ‘no votes in defence’ ‘But what they have to understand is that defence is part of the DNA of the Conservative Party. And that’s true even in constituencies which don’t have a garrison. ‘Conservative voters instinctively believe that defence of the realm is the first priority of government.’ ‘And if people around the country do not see that is the case they will ask themselves what is the Conservative Party for?’ ‘We are following through a Lib Dem promise to spend 0.7 per cent on aid but we won’t commit to defence spending. People are asking is this the right order of priorities?’ Rory Stewart, chairman of the Commons defence committee said: ‘The fundamental point is the world is unfortunately more dangerous now than it has been in the past 20 years at least. ‘That means major powers like Britain have to spend more on defence.’ Fellow Tory James Gray said it would be a major error for Britain to drop its guard at a time of increased Russian aggression and the growing threat from Islamic State. Mr Gray said: ‘The people of the UK want to see strong defence of the realm, and they see the attacks carried out by ISIS and the Russian Bear bombers over Brighton and they realise the world is an extremely dangerous place. And they want the government to step up and hold to the promise they made at the Nato Summit.’ Conservative MPs now plan to use a Commons debate next Thursday to force a vote on the issue. A senior Tory MP last night said there was a ‘determination’ to force a vote, despite pressure from Downing Street to avoid a damaging split in the run-up to the election. Although the vote will not be binding on Government policy, defeat would be embarrassing for the Tory leadership and increase the pressure on ministers to back the spending target. China is to boost its military budget by 10 per cent this year to £94billion, making it the world’s second-biggest spender on defence. Last year, it spent £85billion, compared with Britain’s £37.4billion – but that is still only around a third of what the US spends. Beijing is seeking to assert itself as a growing power and officials say the money is to modernise the People’s Liberation Army – the world’s largest standing military force. China's growing force: Only the US spends more on defence . The US fears that China considerably understates its actual defence spending. Beijing has recently taken a more assertive stance on territorial disputes with Japan and other neighbours, leading to a rise in regional tensions. In response, Japan and India have increased their military budgets.
David Cameron is facing a growing Tory mutiny over defence spending . Conservative MPs plotting major rebellion during Commons debate . Debate will call for UK to honour commitment to spend at least 2% of national income on defence - but Cameron has refused to guarantee pledge .