North East MP Welcomes U-Turn on TA Training cuts (North East and Central Fife Liberal Democrats)

North East and Central Fife Liberal Democrats <hq@necflibdems.org.uk>

North East MP Welcomes U-Turn on TA Training cuts

October 28, 2009 4:16 PM
Originally published by Scottish Liberal Democrats

MP Malcolm Bruce has welcomed the Government's decision to cancel a cut of £20 million to the Territorial Army's training budget which would have led to the suspension of TA training programmes for 6 months.

Armed Forces Minister Bill Rammell was forced to adjust the Government's initial plans on Monday after the planned training cutbacks provoked a furious response from MPs and serving members of the TA, pledging that all recruits would have at least one training night per month this year. It was announced this morning that the initiative had been scrapped entirely after the intervention of the Prime Minister.Malcolm Bruce MP: Gordon

Before the decision to cancel the proposed cuts was announced earlier, Mr Bruce had written to the Secretary of State for Defence for the government to reverse their position on the issue as a matter of urgency.

Commenting, Mr Bruce said:

'I am well aware that in recent years Territorial Army personnel from Scotland have been a vital part of the UK's frontline military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan.

'When Ministers are planning to waste billions of pounds on upgrading the UK's nuclear deterrent and shortcomings in procurement systems have led to substantial cost overruns in other areas, it is absurd that officials had decided that essential training budgets were the best place for savings to be made.

'Although I appreciate that resources have to be prioritised for operational requirements, the cuts that the Government had proposed to the TA budget could only have had a detrimental impact on troop morale and retention and I am pleased that Ministers have reconsidered their position on this issue.'