A group of British naval officers saluting during a wreath-laying ceremony in November 2025. The Royal Navy is spending roughly $270,000 to alter the women’s jackets after complaints about the placement of the top buttons, although they have remained the same since World War II. (UK Ministry of Defence/LPhot Kayleigh Stephenson)

The Royal Navy Is Spending a Fortune to Address Suggestive Uniform Buttons

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The decision to spend roughly $270,000 on altering the naval jacket, whose design has remained the same since World War II, has been widely derided in the British press.

The British military’s senior service could be spending more than $270,000 to address buttons on uniforms. The news comes even as the Royal Navy, which has more admirals than active warships, struggles to get its two conventionally-powered aircraft carriers out to sea.

The issue is that some female officers noted the presence of “inappropriately placed buttons” on the No. 1 jacket, The Times first reported. According to the paper of record, an internal memo called for the jackets to be modified “at the Crown’s expense.” But that........

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