// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
British army told to stop non-essential training exercises to save money
The Army has been told to stop "non-essential" training exercises to save money, according to a defence source.
It will continue to train soldiers preparing to be deployed or on deployments - such as units sent to Estonia, the Falklands or Cyprus.
But units back in the UK and who are not preparing for a specific deployment have been told to cut back on collective training exercises due to financial pressures.
It comes as Prime Minister Andy Burnham faces pressure to increase spending on defence.
The government is increasing defence spending to 2.5% of national income by next year, but is under growing pressure to reach a target of 3% by the end of the decade.
A defence source said the plans mean not doing what he called "nice to have training" - like large live fire exercises and rehearsing platoon attacks in UK training areas like Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire and Sennybridge in Wales.
It is understood planned exercises that were due to take place that are now cancelled include one involving the Royal Tank Regiment conducting live fire drills in Wales and a separate exercise involving tanks and Apace helicopters.
This was not the choice of the army, the source said. The pause is expected to continue for most of this year.
Other specific training aimed at modernising the Army – such as practising drone and counter-drone warfare is expected to continue.
The Army says it is prioritising the training that has been informed by lessons learnt from the war in Ukraine, and is reviewing each request for training on a case-by-case basis.