Rt. Hon. John F. Spellar MP

Warley MP and Previous Armed Forces Minister Slams Suggestion to Call the Army in to Man the Borders

Suggestions by Government Ministers that they will call in the Army to try to man border controls have been slammed by Warley MP and previous Armed Forces Minister John Spellar.

Cabinet Office Minister, Francis Maude and Immigration Minister, Damian Green, were both quoted over the weekend indicating that they had asked the Army for help.

John Spellar MP said:-

“This is very unwise and shows how little these Ministers understand the Services.  The Armed Forces leadership will be concerned as they have always been very clear in the past that their role is to defend the nation and definitely not to get involved in Party politics or industrial disputes.  Only as a last resort if life is at risk or the economy is in danger of breaking down should they be called in. Ministers are showing their lack of understanding of our Armed Forces and their inexperience in industrial relations negotiating.  Even worse they are hyping up the political rhetoric to try to make this a political dispute.   It is disgraceful that Ministers are trying to bring the Forces in when they should really be getting round the table to resolve these difficult issues.”