EX-SERVICE personnel of all ranks including myself who campaigned for several years in support of the former regimental structure have been careful, since Parliament made its decision, never to write or say anything that could affect the morale of all the new regiments ('Give our soldiers a fighting chance', Comment, June 22). I do not make any claims about Restore Our Army Regiments (Roar) for whom I am not a spokesman.
Let's leave opinion out of this and look at the facts. Fact. Along with but apart from Roar, we started the campaign of letters in newspapers about low pay, inadequate equipment, shortage of fixed wing and helicopter aircraft, inadequately protected
front-line vehicles, and dreadful standards of many barracks and much service housing.
Fact. Since we started campaigning on behalf of serving personnel as they are not allowed to speak out, gradually more and more influential voices have come into the open agreeing with what we have been writing – including coroners and the head of the army himself who recently wrote that military pay must be improved. Gradually things have improved for the armed forces but there remains much to be done.
Fact. We live in a democracy and we have the right to speak out on any maladministration by the Government, not least life threatening maladministration such as that suffered in silence by the superb personnel of all three armed services.
Fact. The morale of the armed forces has not been lowered by former service personnel who went silent on the regiments issue once Parliament decided the matter but who continued speaking out for them – far from it – it has been lowered by a disgraceful Government.
Major Michael Hamilton (Retd), KOSB, KelsoThe full article contains 290 words and appears in Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
