Extract from Lords debate on UK Defence Forces - Nov 23
Friday, 24 November 2017 07:15
Lord Bilimoria (CB):...This is about defence capability, but it is
also about credibility. We were a global power but, thanks to
Brexit, the perception is that we no longer are. I
host Indian civil servants in Parliament and they
unanimously think that we should remain in the European Union. One
went so far as to say that he felt sorry for us. We have an
abundance of soft power, but it is useless without hard power.
Barrons described the cut in the Marines as “madness”,
which...Request free trial
(CB):...This is about
defence capability, but it is also about credibility. We were a
global power but, thanks to Brexit, the perception is that we no
longer are. I host Indian civil servants in Parliament
and they unanimously think that we should remain in the European
Union. One went so far as to say that he felt sorry for us. We have
an abundance of soft power, but it is useless without hard power.
Barrons described the cut in the Marines as “madness”, which was
echoed by Admiral Sir George Zambellas, who has just retired. He
said that the Marines are the “Premier League fighting force”, made
up of a small proportion of the total number of troops, but they
contribute half our Special Forces. He said that the services have
been under-resourced for years and that the choice being offered to
service chiefs amounted to whether to cut off a right arm or a left
one...
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