Hello and welcome to not another one, the podcast with me, Steve Richards, Ian Martin, Miranda Green and Tim Montgomery.

Thank you very much for tuning in. And as ever, it seems these days,

we gather with fast-moving events. Kirstama has announced on the eve of his trip to Washington

that the government will increase defence spending to 2.5% by 2027. And further commitments beyond that. We're going to explore the many implications.

It's going to be paid for by cuts in the aid of budget. But before all of that, Ian, you've

brought your guitar in to play as a song. No, no, I'm joking. I promised the listeners I definitely

would never, ever do that.

And that's one pledge you, you, do you want it on a pledge card?

Yeah. Sort of retro 1990.

What is it? An edstone, sort of the tablet of stone.

That you will never sing live on this podcast.

Doubts about delivery are creeping in. I promise. I promise. It's a cast iron guarantee. Did you have a good time? You were going up to Scotland to watch the rugby? I wasn't. I was staying in England because it was in, it was at Twickenham on Saturday. So thank you for mentioning it. It was a Scottish disaster.

I was at Scottish. I don't follow rugby, as you can tell.

I didn't even know where it was playing play.

I was actually, I tried to wave to you because I was stuck in the traffic jam.

Oh really? Just outside the stadium, which was considerably long and tedious.

I said to everyone in the car who didn't care, I think my friend's Ian's in there and waved. She won't passing him on the road. It's him on the road. It's just been you waving to him in the stadium. Yeah. I had a novel experience though in that I've decided with this Six Nations campaign, this is the second game I've done it, watching Scotland, to not have a drink at all until after the game. Because usually you can meet people, have a couple of pints and then have a pint at the ground or something. And it's a completely different experience. Watching sober. I mean, totally. I'm not saying I'm in the habit of watching rugby drunk, but I just mean it's a very, very different thing actually concentrating on the game.

So that was why we get.

All the listeners will already conclude that you normally want to drug who drunk.

Yeah, just record podcasts completely.

Exactly.

But it was a great day out with friends, yeah, despite the result.

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