Deputy general secretary Mike Clancy said the report confirmed everything that Prospect and other defence unions and the defence industry had already told the government.

“On the speed of the review, the scale of the cuts envisaged, the process of consultation and the review itself, the defence select committee has told the government it risks making big mistakes.

“In spite of being told by the Secretary of State, Dr Liam Fox that the review would be policy led, it is apparent that the review has been hijacked by the Treasury. It risks making decisions that fit the financial straitjacket but loses sight of the longer term strategic needs of the UK’s armed forces,” said Clancy.

The union says the defence industry is already reeling from cut backs that threaten the defence industrial infrastructure and skills the UK will rely on if it is to take advantage of any economic upturn.

“Far from being a coherent assessment of future threats and capability, the SDSR is a smokescreen for massive cuts that will destroy thousands of jobs and leave the UK in the second division of military powers,” said Clancy.