Supporting our Forces not the War

As reported on the Banbury LibDems website, one of my first acts of this general election campaign was to sign the Royal British Legion pledge ‘to do my bit’ for the Armed Forces family. I was very happy to do so and to commit to finding ways to help our troops and our ex-servicemen and women in Parliament.

Whatever we think of the government’s decisions on military escapades around the world, I think it’s important that we differentiate between the decision-makers and those on the front-line — between the donkeys in Westminster and the heroes out there. Of course, one of the best ways to support our troops would be to vote against illegal wars. I am proud to be of a party which voted consistently against the invasion of Iraq. I welcome the fact that Banbury’s most recent MP voted once against the war but I wish he had done so earlier and consistently, as the LibDems did.

And supporting the armed forces also means making the right choices about military equipment and weapons in the future. The biggest decision will be Trident, and I have given my line on that already. It’s interesting to see in The Times today that former generals are singing from the same hymn sheet — saying that if we want to invest in our forces, it may be best not to have a like-for-like replacement for Trident. Will Labour and the Conservatives listen to the advice of the experts, I wonder.