Unfortunately, I think the anonymous general's comments are probably true. And I don't think it's budgetary; IIRC Great Britain is one of the only NATO states that is meeting its 2% of GDP expenditure requirements.
This is also not a problem unique to the UK. Germany, which has one of the best-on-paper armies in Europe, is also a bit of a mess. hardly a week goes by where there's not some scandal or other about the state of the German military.
The Bad News Bundeswehr: An Examination of the Truly Dire State of Germany's Military
This is also not a problem unique to the UK. Germany, which has one of the best-on-paper armies in Europe, is also a bit of a mess. hardly a week goes by where there's not some scandal or other about the state of the German military.
The Bad News Bundeswehr: An Examination of the Truly Dire State of Germany's Military