Only 17% of forces say they are well kitted out

Fewer than one in seven of Britain's armed forces think they are well equipped, an internal survey by the Ministry of Defence has revealed.

Twice as many think they are not given the right equipment to do their job, despite heavy MoD spending on new weaponry.

Just over half the 1,600 soldiers, sailors and airmen polled think the MoD fails to spend taxpayers' money wisely. Barely 15 per cent think the £30billion budget is well spent.

There is strong support among servicemen for buying weapons and equipment from abroad to get the best quality or the cheapest deals, rather than always buying British. Critics have accused the MoD of giving big development contracts to British plants to secure jobs when bargains could be bought off the shelf.

Labour chairman of the Commons defence committee, Bruce George, said some findings were "startling". "There are some worrying figures here," he said.