Lord Guthrie said a European Army was was “more than a gleam in the eye” for the French and German governments

Lord Guthrie, the former Chief of Defence Staff, has defected from the Remain to the Brexit camp over fears about a potential European Army.

The peer, 77, had been one of the most senior military figures in favour of staying in the European Union in February, endorsing the notion that Britain would be safer.

Last night he said that he had made a mistake in pledging his allegiance and has reconsidered his view about the EU’s potential role in defence.

“I think a European Army could damage Nato. It is expensive,” he told The Daily Telegraph. “It’s unnecessary duplication to have it. It would appeal to some euro vanity thing.”

He added that it would be “thoroughly irresponsible” to create such an army.

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