Wes Streeting says he began storing food and water weeks ago as a precaution against a national emergency, as the defence secretary urged households to prepare and said his department was already increasing spending to address threats to the UK.

His comments come as the chancellor, John Healey, seeks to raise defence spending to 3% of GDP by 2030 and 3.5% by 2035. Departments across Whitehall have been asked to find 1% cuts in their long-term investment budgets to help fund defence.

Streeting said his supplies included bottled water, a first aid kit, a battery-powered torch, baked beans, sweetcorn, red kidney beans, tuna, protein bars and nuts. Having recently urged Britons to make similar preparations, he said he wanted to “lead by example”.

He described household preparedness as common sense for everyday challenges. His account also illustrated the budgeting decisions involved: his mother had contacted him before payday to ask how much she should buy while making her money last until the end of the month.

On military readiness, Streeting said Britain must deter its adversaries and, “should deterrence fail, to be ready to defeat them”. He argued that modernisation must be balanced with value for money, warning: “Spending more money badly is not virtuous.”

The funding promises follow a dispute that helped bring down Keir Starmer’s premiership. Healey resigned as defence secretary in June, accusing Starmer and the then chancellor, Rachel Reeves, of putting national security at risk by failing to provide sufficient resources for the defence investment plan.

Now chancellor in Andy Burnham’s government, Healey said in his first Budget on Wednesday that the plan was fully funded. Nato secretary general Mark Rutte welcomed the spending commitment, saying Britain was on “a credible path towards meeting the commitment made by all Nato allies in The Hague”.

But Healey faced criticism for postponing details of how the 3% target would be reached until next year’s spending review. His funding assurance therefore leaves the route to the target awaiting fuller explanation.

Streeting also accused the courts of conducting an “active campaign” to “smear the reputation and integrity of our special forces”. The supplied account provides no supporting evidence for that allegation or response from the courts. He nevertheless left open the possibility of scrutiny of special forces and Britain’s nuclear weapons by MPs and peers on the intelligence and security committee, saying they could be trusted.