The MoD and its errosion of the British Armed Services

reply to post by stumason

It's not as dramatic as being made out, all these cuts. We're slightly exposed for the next few years but come 2020 we'll have most of our bang back. People forget that throughout history, the British military has always done things on a shoestring. We built the worlds largest ever Empire on the cheap.

I hope you're right.

Do they really? Because the forces have several dedicated hospitals for the wounded, the NHS provides fantastic care for them also and there are fantastic programmes for those leaving the services. What exactly are you referring to?

The instances of alcoholism and homelessness are rife with ex-servicemen who aren't supported even nearly enough when they become civvies. There are hundreds, if not thousands of ex-military vets who have no idea what to do themselves without the close knit bond of army life.
Not all healthcare is substandard. I find (or rather, I found) military hospitals and care centers to be extremely efficient. It's when the baton falls to the good old NHS, which is not what it used to be. This isn't even a military issue actually, more a reflection on the standards of care we give not only to war wounded in our civilian hospitals, but to the general public at large. For every great nurse and doctor, there is an incompetent lot, and that is unacceptable.

No, but we have to make cuts due the massive overspending of the previous Government. I coudl rattle on for ages about how exactly the Labour Government spunked your tax money up the wall if you want. We're kind of left with no choice but to make cuts. You do know that when Labour left office, we were coughing out twice the Defence budget in interest payments on the national debt, don't you? And when Tony took office in 1997 he had a £10 Billion budget surplus.... Thanks Labour for the current situation with their social engineering, jobs for votes (doubling of the civil service to create client voters reliant on the Government for their livelihood) and making 50% of the nations economy dependent on Government spending. Like I said, I can go on if you like.

Oh I'm well aware of Labours shortcomings. I'm not a fan of them, the Tories or the lapdog Lib Dems.

I know there has to be spending cuts, I just feel they are pushing things through at an astonishing rate and making a lot of people worse off for a significant portion of their lives.

It's hardly a dissolution and you're being massively over dramatic about it. I agree that Nimrod should have been kept, however. But we have some prgrammes coming down the line that could make the Nimrod obsolete anyway.

Haha, yeah I probably am. Again, I hope you're right, because our air defense is important.

The cuts are necessary and with the massive amount of waste one could argue they are long overdue. Media hype based on nothing and Labour run councils using them as a political tool do not help.

Long, long overdue. If Labour weren't so underhanded, and had faced the mounting problem when it started, we wouldn't be having this conversation. Anyway, it's happening now whether I like it or not. Maybe the UK will get its grit n balls back because of this.

Originally posted by CholmondleyWarner
reply to post by tommyjo

 

I agree with you... I kind of meant that if the same political situation that exists now existed back in 1982 in the Thatcher years then we couldn't have done anything about it.

Sorry, I misread you initial post. I agree.

TJ

Its all a complete nonsense.

We can quite obviously afford all the things we are cutting. We just choose not to, its a lack of political courage to make the argument to the nation.

The list of things that should be cut before essential defence capability is huge. The ineptitude of the previous government does not excuse the lacking moral courage of the present.

There is nothing on the books that will replace the Nimrod MRA4 in terms of capability. UAVs and the RC-135 buy may supplant its ISTAR role but there is nothing to replace its long range Maritime roles. For an island nation that is stupid.

The Nimrod R.1 has been extended in service due to the Libyan crisis. The two Nimrod R.1s were due to be retired on March 31st 2011.

www.bbc.co.uk...

www.raf.mod.uk...

One Nimrod R.1 has been noted by Air Traffic Control and radio enthusiasts deploying to Cyprus and working off the Maltese coast.

forums.airshows.co.uk...

TJ