Should the Armed Forces
THE Government intends to let people who have never lived in this country join the Army because of falling recruitment (Mail). What a choice we face between a foreign legion who are #justforthemoney, or an army of snowflakes who would melt in the heat of battle. I blame the witchhunt of former soldiers over spurious claims made over incidents while they were serving in Northern Ireland and Afghanistan. As a former soldier who served three tours of duty in Northern Ireland, I live in terror of a letter threatening me with prison for doing the job the government sent me to do.
J. B., Lincoln. CAN we put the blame for a lack of recruits on lame TV adverts? There is a lack of support when leaving the Forces and an increasing number of servicemen and women suffer physical and mental health problems, not to mention being shot at on tour or as terrorist targets in
the UK. Does the MoD think people from the Commonwealth are stupid enough to work for the minimum wage? On-tour legal protection would be a better starting point.
DON TROWER, Braintree, Essex. FIRST, we couldn’t find enough British people to pick our fruit and veg because certain farmers only want to pay minimum wages. Now there aren’t 8,200 youngsters to fill vacancies in the Armed Forces. It’s down to the stupid, politically correct, touchy-feely adverts that make joining up sound like taking part in a therapy group. STEFAN BADHAM, Portsmouth, Hants. SPEAKING as a retired serviceman, if the Government and Ministry of Defence supported our Armed Forces, instead of prosecuting them, there would be no need to recruit outside the UK.
D. HUMPHREYS, Oswestry, Shropshire. IT IS easy to see why the number of recruits is dropping. The Forces are no longer treated with respect. Look at how soldiers who served in Northern Ireland have been treated. The Government has disowned them and left them to fend for themselves when facing criminal charges. When President Trump talks to his soldiers, he has fire in his heart and tells them how proud he is of them. When have you ever heard a British military representative praise our servicemen and women?
S. HAYWOOD, Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Notts. THE attempt to save Capita’s poor recruitment record by dropping the five-year rule, allowing Commonwealth citizens to join the Forces, is patronising. This rule never applied to non-Commonwealth, Nepali or Irish citizens, who will be years ahead of them on housing lists and planning their life and careers after their service in the Armed Forces. KEITH WINKWORTH, Blackwater, Surrey.