UK 'preparing blueprint for direct attack from Russia' as defence fears soar

Britain is overhauling its Cold War-era defence preparations in response to growing fears of a by Russia, as senior officials warn the country is ill-equipped for a modern conflict on home soil. A classified review led by the Cabinet Office is reportedly now under way to update the UK's long-dormant "homeland defence plan" - a blueprint not meaningfully revised in two decades.

The move follows a series of threats and intensifying anxiety in Whitehall about gaps in the nation's civil and military readiness. The updated strategy is expected to spell out how the Government would respond to a full-scale attack by a hostile state, including missile strikes, large-scale cyber disruption and even the deployment of nuclear weapons. It will also include contingency plans for safeguarding ministers, relocating the Royal Family, and coordinating emergency services during a national security crisis.

The plan comes as security officials admit Britain would be "outgunned" by Russia and its allies in a full-scale conflict, both in terms of military capability and civil preparedness.

A senior government source told the plan would update the 20-year-old War Book, a Cold War-era dossier of wartime instructions, and would account for the "new realities of warfare".

That includes cyber attacks, satellite sabotage, and hypersonic missile strikes that could evade existing defences.

The Cabinet Office has already modelled a scenario involving simultaneous cyber attacks and missile strikes on British infrastructure.

A risk assessment published in January warned that such an attack was "likely to result in civilian fatalities as well as members of the emergency services," while also causing "serious economic damage and disruption to essential services".

Security chiefs are especially concerned about gas terminals, undersea cables and the UK's five operational nuclear power stations.

A Whitehall assessment found a strike on one of the reactors could release radioactive material and trigger "significant prolonged long-term security, health, environmental and economic impacts."

Last month, a senior RAF figure warned that if the early stages of the Ukraine war had occurred on British soil, Russian missiles would have penetrated UK defences and destroyed key targets.

Defence officials are now calling for a UK version of Israel's Iron Dome missile defence system. One Whitehall insider said it was "no longer a theoretical debate" and that ministers were actively considering "options to reinforce homeland security."

Ken McCallum, director general of MI5, said in October the number of state threats investigated by the agency had surged by 48% in a year.

He said: "Russia has significantly increased its use of cyber attacks as a tool of warfare."

The new strategy is also expected to include protocols for moving ministers and the Royal Family to secure locations. During the Cold War, such plans included evacuating the Prime Minister to a bunker in the Cotswolds and relocating the Royal Family aboard the royal yacht.

The updated contingency plan would similarly divide the UK into 12 zones, each controlled by a minister, senior military official, judge and chief constable with sweeping emergency powers. Public service announcements would be broadcast on the BBC, and even the country's most valuable artworks could be moved to Scotland for safekeeping.

The planning comes ahead of Labour's Strategic Defence Review, due to be published later this year. The review will examine the readiness of Britain's armed forces and explore measures to strengthen domestic defences, including infrastructure resilience and troop deployment on UK soil.

Sir Keir Starmer has committed to spending 2.5% of GDP on defence by 2027, but ministers have yet to confirm how that money will be allocated.

A government spokesperson said: "The UK has robust plans in place for a range of potential emergencies that have been developed and tested over many years."

Despite growing talk of diplomacy, including peace efforts spearheaded by US President Donald Trump, Russia was last month officially designated a national security threat by the UK for the first time-a clear signal that Whitehall may be preparing for the worst.