Cuts to Armed Forces completely nuts, former defence minister warns
Planned cuts to Britain's Armed Forces are "completely nuts", former defence minister Lord Robathan has warned.
The Conservative peer hit out at the Government's proposals, which include reducing the size of the regular Army from a commitment of 82,000 troops to 73,000 by 2025.
The Government's position is the Army will end up with a total force capacity of 100,000 soldiers - but only when reservists are included.
Lord Robathan served in the Coldstream Guards from 1974 to 1989, then volunteered to rejoin the Army in 1991 and served as chief of staff of the prisoner of war guard force in Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait.
Speaking in the House of Lords, Lord Robathan told Defence Minister Baroness Goldie: "One of the problems with serving in the Armed Forces at the moment is a perception that they are part of a declining industry - and this is not a new thing.
"We are actually declining the Armed Forces at the moment by shrinking them - now this is completely nuts.
"Does [Lady Goldie] consider that perhaps the new Secretary of State [Grant Shapps] may take a look at this and say well, with a war going on in Europe it may be the time to revisit the so-called refresh and actually say we need troops, we need sailors, we need airmen and we need to get them soon?
"And if you have a sense that the armed forces are going forward, actually people will stay because they’ll feel they’re doing something worthwhile."
Lady Goldie replied: "Well, I think I'd wish to, with the greatest of respect, slightly disagree with my noble friend and disabuse him of the idea that there's some decline going on - there's not.
"In fact, the example the UK has set globally in respect of our support for Ukraine has been universally admired and that is depending not just on military donations, but it is depending also on the Nato support which we’re able to provide."
Liberal Democrat defence spokeswoman Baroness Smith suggested the Government should go back to "at least 80,000" troops.
Labour former defence secretary Lord Reid said: "Isn't it plain to anyone who is an observer of events that there is a chronic discord between our foreign policy ambitions and the operational capability of our armed forces?
"We know that we have the smallest army since the Napoleonic period, we have a tiny fleet, we have a shortage of aircraft to the extent that we have an aircraft carrier that has only eight planes on it in its operations.
"Isn't it time to have a genuine strategic defence review in an attempt to bring our ambitions into line with our operational capability, otherwise we will just delude ourselves, as well as trying to delude others?"
Lady Goldie replied: "I'm not in the business of delusion and I hope noble lords will accept that."
She said the Government’s defence reviews did align with its strategic foreign policy objectives and said the UK had two aircraft carriers that were the "envy of many other global powers".
She added: "To take the platitude that’s often trotted out about the smallest army since Napoleon, well, no wonder. In the time of Napoleon and the time of Wellington, we sent thousands of people right up to the front line to be slaughtered and to be injured.
"Now with technology, thankfully, we don’t have to do that and Future Soldier encompasses that very different vision and concept for how a modern military operates."
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