Britain isn't quite as rich as one would imagine, particularly when it comes to outfitting Her Majesty's Armed Forces. SAS and Apaches aside, the British Army isn't exactly the best-outfitted force in the world. There's also the economic problems during the Cold War, where thanks to powerful trade unions, Britain was very uncompetitive compared with other nations. (Until Margaret Thatcher came about and broke their backs, that is.)
The fact that they also sold their gold reserves when gold was at an all time low may also be a factor.
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