Cold War medals
SIR – John Healey, the shadow defence secretary, wants to ensure that serving members and veterans of the Armed Forces are awarded medals in recognition of their valuable contribution to the nation’s interests (report, November 9). You report that, in 2012, David Cameron decided that existing rules should not be changed, but that “there should be greater readiness to review past decisions”.
Spare a thought, then, for the many thousands of veterans who served in the Armed Forces over the 44 years of the so-called Cold War. While it may not have been a “shooting war” as we know it, hundreds of service personnel lost their lives in pursuit of the operational capability that was judged to be essential for deterrence against Warsaw Pact aggression.
The Navy and Army will rightly have their own claims – but, speaking on behalf the Royal Air Force, a trip to the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire will sharply remind visitors of the significant losses incurred during those years. To deliver deterrence, we flew to – and sometimes beyond – the limits of both the aircrew and their aircraft. With little margin for error, casualties were inevitable, particularly in the low-level fast-jet role.
Memories fade with time, but before the Cold War becomes a totally forgotten part of the peace dividend, it would be good to see some recognition of the contribution made by the Cold War warriors of all three Services who served in that period of our postSecond-World-War history.
Group Captain Alan Ferguson (retd) Hadleigh, Suffolk
SIR – I note that the shadow defence secretary will conduct a review of how military medals are awarded if the Labour Party forms the next government. I wonder if he will also take the opportunity to correct an iniquitous and mean-minded decision by a former Labour government on this issue.
It is the custom that jubilee medals are awarded to all military personnel serving at the time of that jubilee. The one exception of which I am aware was the Silver Jubilee in 1977. The Labour government of the day placed a severe restriction on the number of medals issued. A typical unit of 650 men received just five, with instructions that the commanding officer and the regimental sergeant major were to be awarded medals. That left just three medals to be issued, somehow, among the remaining 648 men.
Perhaps the current Defence Secretary might take this opportunity to show the Labour Party how it should have been handled, and authorise the issue of a Silver Jubilee medal to all those serving in 1977.
RB Howard-Williams
Budleigh Salterton, Devon