An independent Scotland would mean even deeper defence cuts than those ordered by the Tory-Lib Dem Coalition, Labour will warn today.

Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy will say the SNP plans to spend £2.5 billion a year fall far short of recent calculations that the UK's contribution to Scotland's defences is £3.4bn.

Mr Murphy will say the shortfall equates to a 25% cut - far greater than the 7.5% cut to the UK's defences that resulted from the Coalition's 2010 defence review.

Mr Murphy is expected to say SNP defence policy is "based more on faith than fact. There is no problem facing the world today to which the solution is Scottish independence". He will say: "You can't spend just 7p in the £1 of the UK defence budget and claim that Scotland will be better defended.

"The SNP's absurd policy would cut Scotland's defence even deeper than the Tories have done.

"They haven't done even their basic thinking as independence is a powerful idea of the 19th century ill-suited to the 21st."

His comments come just days ahead of a report on defence and an independent Scotland by the Commons Defence Select Committee.

Mr Murphy will also tell his party conference that Labour needs to remain a party prepared to intervene militarily over issues such as Syria.