Another Labour Lickspittle on Afghanistan
Sir Richard Dannatt
David Crausby the Labour MP for Bolton North East and a member of the Defence Select Committee but definitely not a Minister, as the Times seems to think, has expressed fury that General Sir Richard Dannatt, the chief of the general staff, had attended a private dinner with Tory MPs and suggested an extra 2,000 troops were needed in Helmand province.The general’s remarks put him at odds with the official government line that the 9,000 British troops already in Afghanistan are sufficient to cope with the current offensive.
Mr Crausby who generally asks questions in Parliament about Fluoridation, Gibraltar, Fluoride: Drinking Water, Fluoride, Home Energy Efficiency Schemes and recently dipped into Defence by asking a written question about the vital subject of “What recent assessment he has made of the merits of replacing bearskin caps worn by the Guards Regiments with caps made from synthetic material.” has said
“General Dannatt has crossed an important line. He is playing a high-risk game. It is not appropriate to play party politics at this time. Dannatt should just get on with the job. After the conflict if there are lessons to be learnt we should do so in a considered manner.”
Now it may not be Party Politics time but it is certainly time for Dannatt to do anything possible to protect his Armed Forces, and if this means sometimes upsetting the Government then so be it.
The rest of the article in the Times is also interesting as it demonstrates the absolute disaster this government is making of policy in Afghanistan. They appear to have 15 different strategies all diametrically opposed. According to the article
It emerged last night that the Treasury has told MoD officials that there will be no funds for extra helicopters because the Americans have now effectively taken over Helmand.
The chancellor, Alistair Darling, insisted yesterday that the troops would get anything they needed. “You can’t send troops into the front line and not be prepared to see it through in terms of the . . . resources that they need,” he said.
But an MoD official working on urgent operational requirements for Afghanistan said the Treasury had made it clear that there was no extra money for vital equipment, including armoured vehicles.
Plans to send extra helicopters to southern Afghanistan to support British special forces have been cancelled, one defence source said. The forces will have to rely on US helicopters and sharing those used by British troops in Helmand.
Of the 9,000 troops in Afghanistan, there are 5,000 in Helmand who have just 10 Chinooks and five smaller, less-powerful Lynx helicopters compared with the 120 Chinooks allocated to the 8,000 US marines in the centre and south of the province.
The words Arse and Elbow come to mind.
via Labour clashes with army as Afghan death toll mounts – Times Online.
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