Gordon Brown makes a serious Enemy

It's all very well making an enemy in Politics but when you make the head of the army an enemy you had better have some serious firepower behind you.
One Whitehall source said

It was Gordon’s decision, Dannatt has made a lot of enemies among the senior reaches of the Labour party.

Gordon just doesn't like criticism.

Gordon Brown pulls rank to stop General Sir Richard Dannatt heading forces - Times Online

Our forces can't carry on like this

	General Dannatt describes his report as an accurate and vivid picture of Army life

Read the attached article.

This is an absolute disgrace and it is not as if there have been no warning to the Government or the MOD. Combined with this story it is no wonder that recruitment is struggling and our service personnel are leaving the forces at an alarming rate.

When will this government understand that you cannot keep underfunding its Armed Services and then demand that they fight on ever more fronts with ever decreasing resources. This is a national disgrace and yet we have a part-time Defence Minister who appears disinterested with the plight of our armed services. We also have a leadership that is disintegrating into chaos and is more committed to trying to get itself liked rather than governing this country.

General Sir Richard Dannatt has warned, in the Sunday Telegraph, that years of Government under-funding and overstretch have left troops feeling

devalued, angry and suffering from Iraq fatigue

He also says in a top-level report that the present level of operations is "unsustainable", the Army is "under-manned" and increasing numbers of troops are "disillusioned" with service life, states that the "military covenant is clearly out of kilter", and the chain of command needs to improve standards of pay, accommodation and medical care.

The report also ays that operations on the two fronts of Iraq and Afghanistan are putting soldiers and their families under "great pressure", and that the long-term impact of operations is "damaging" and is "mortgaging the goodwill of our people". In terms of "overstretch", the report says, "the tank of goodwill now runs on vapour; many experienced staff are talking of leaving".

The report adds:

• Delays to military inquests are a disgrace

• Military housing estates are unsafe and being overrun by immigrant families

• Poor food quality is creating a "pot-noodle and sandwich" culture among junior soldiers

• Work-life balance is an increasing concern

• Soldiers are "going sick" to get out of the Army

• Leave is often cancelled or constrained because of operational overstretch

• Harmony guidelines - the time between operational tours - are becoming meaningless

• The Army is no longer fun

• Fitness in the Army is tailing off and more soldiers are medically downgraded

Last week, Lt Col Stuart Tootal, 42, who commanded the Parachute Regiment in Afghanistan, resigned from the Army over the "shoddy" treatment of injured troops. In a letter to defence chiefs, he was reported to have criticised levels of pay, a lack of training equipment and the appalling housing - all issues raised in Gen Dannatt's report.

Our forces can't carry on like this, says General Sir Richard Dannatt - Telegraph

Vital Therapy Centre For Soldiers - Appeal

This is a disgrace.

The head of the army Sir Richard Dannatt is having to appeal for funds for Headley Court rehabilitation centre near Ashtead, Surrey.

What do they need this money for.
Just simple facilities that should be available to our returning wounded soldiers.

The Help for Heroes appeal is to build a full-size rehabilitation pool and re-equip the antiquated gym at the centre, where currently 180 servicemen and women are being treated as in-patients.

At present, severely disabled service personnel, many of them amputees, endure a two-and a half-hour round trip to a public pool for vital cardiovascular exercise.

Once there, they must swim alongside the paying public in what is often a very private form of therapy.

The public should not have to be asked to fund this sort of centre, it should be adequately funded by the government as part of their Covenant to our Armed Services. It is their duty to support the armed forces particularly when they have been injured during the course of their service.

Only last week I blogged on another appeal by Sir Richard for the people of this country and in particular the government to get behind our soldiers.

It is time this government accepted it responsibility and Honoured the Covenant.

To make a donation, visit www.helpforheroes.org.uk. You can also email info@helpforheroes. org.uk, or call 0845 673 1760.


Army chief launches £5m appeal to fund vital therapy centre for injured troops | the Daily Mail