Fitaloon at MicroShaft

The article looks at  explores the impact the crash of sterling last year on the defence budget and also the FCO budgets. It includes the above video which contrasts the statements by Lady Kinnock and Gordon Brown.

According to the Times

The Defence Secretary admitted today that he was being forced to take hard decisions to ensure that the plunge in the pound’s value would not hinder the war in Afghanistan.

Bob Ainsworth said that the exchange rate was causing difficulties for both his department and the Foreign Office (FCO) as ministers were accused of drawing up a secret hit list of embassies to be closed.

The charge follows the disclosure yesterday by minister Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead that the FCO was facing a £110 million budget shortfall as a result of currency fluctuations.

Speaking at a display of upgraded kit for frontline troops, Mr Ainsworth said

that the budget for Afghanistan remained the “overwhelming priority”. However, he said: “It doesn’t take a genius to know that if the pound exchange rate changes then that gives us issues. It gives us difficulties and we have to deal with those difficulties.

With the pound having lost 20-25% against other major currencies this must mean we are going to have a very hard struggle in 2010 unless extra money is put into the budget, an unlikely event when according to such sages as Lord Mandelson we need to make cuts of 80 billion.

Also Gordon Brown, saviour of the world, has yet again not quite told the truth again. As the Times quotes this passage from the House of Lords.

“It is a fact that counter-terrorism and radicalisation projects in Pakistan and elsewhere have been the subject of these cuts that the Foreign Office has been obliged to make.” A fall in the value of sterling hits FCO spending as it makes the cost of its operations abroad — paid for in foreign currency — more expensive in relative terms.

Her comments provoked concern on all sides of the House. Even Baroness Royall of Blaisdon, a fellow minister and Leader of the Lords, said she had to “confess to my surprise”.

She said counter-terrorism funding in the Home Office was ring-fenced, adding: “So if it can be ring-fenced in one department, perhaps it could be ring-fenced in another department.” Labour’s Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean, a former foreign office minister and defence procurement minister, said Mr Brown’s statement yesterday — introducing a package of measures to improve security — and Lady Kinnock’s remarks did “not add up to a very coherent point of view”.

Yet again we have empty words and promises from Gordon Brown, who is again going back into his true La-La land mode and ignoring the facts.

Bob Ainsworth: MoD forced into ‘hard decisions’ by fall in sterling – contains video.

Statement available here shortly

BBC – Democracy Live – Nimrod statement.

A day after the government announced it’s intention to raid the coffers of the defence budget to fund Afghanistan, despite its assurances they would found the war from Treasury reserves, we get the unconnected news that the Government Response to the damning report  into the loss of  Nimrod XV230 will be released today.

Any disbelief that the early phasing out of the Nimrod MR2’s is connected to this is purely in my mind. The report released in October’s independent review into the 2006 crash in Afghanistan accused the MoD of sacrificing safety to cut costs.

The investigation ruled the incident, caused by a fuel leak, was preventable.

Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth apologised to victims’ families at the time of the report, and will now make a statement to the House of Commons.

The critical report, by Charles Haddon-Cave QC, said the Afghanistan crash occurred because of a “systemic breach” of the military covenant.

And a safety review of the Nimrod MR2 carried out by the MoD, BAE Systems and QinetiQ was branded a “lamentable job”.

BBC News – Response due over RAF Kinloss Nimrod tragedy report.

More on this later but according to the BBC

The highly critical report, by Charles Haddon-Cave QC, said the Afghanistan crash occurred because of a “systemic breach” of the military covenant.

A safety review of the Nimrod MR2 carried out by the MoD, BAE Systems and QinetiQ was branded a “lamentable job”.

Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth apologised to victims’ families.

Mr Haddon-Cave condemned the change of organisational culture within the MoD between 1998 and 2006, when financial targets came to distract from safety.

He quoted a former senior RAF officer who told his inquiry: “There was no doubt that the culture of the time had switched.

“In the days of the RAF chief engineer in the 1990s, you had to be on top of airworthiness.

“By 2004 you had to be on top of your budget if you wanted to get ahead.”

Mr Haddon-Cave’s report also criticised two RAF officers.

Answorth is the man who told us the Nimrod was airworthy. He lied then and should go.

BBC NEWS | UK | Nimrod review reveals ‘failures’.

According to the Telegraph Bob Ainsworth, the Defence Secretary, has admitted the Government has pushed the armed forces “too hard” and that Britain only has scope for a “relatively small” troop increase in Afghanistan.

No shit Bob, You’ve finally managed to work that out.

The only time we should be running with this level of forces is when we have fully committed to the war and are not dithering about waiting for other countries to make up their minds what strategy we are going to take, until then we are just wasting our time and our armed forces lives.

If we fully commit then we can run “hot” for a while as long as we are making our set objectives. If we are expecting any other country to provide extra forces, apart from the US, then we will be waiting along time.

Bob Ainsworth: Government pushed military ‘too hard’ – Telegraph.