Posts Tagged ‘UK’
(WAR) UK Army Too Broke To Recruit More Troops…
Source: Times Online
The army is being forced to cap its growth because recruitment is “unaffordable”, a leaked Ministry of Defence document has disclosed.
The briefing note — entitled Controlling Growth in Army Strength — is the first admission by defence officials that they do not have enough money to expand and provide further support to overstretched forces in Afghanistan.
Senior army figures believe troop shortages are responsible for the growing number of British casualties in Helmand.
Yet the Ministry of Defence concedes in the memo that increasing the size of the army beyond its full strength of 102,000 is too READ MORE
(READ): Gordon Brown hints at Afghan withdrawal…
Source: Times Online
GORDON BROWN yesterday prepared the ground for a pre-election announcement of troop withdrawals from Afghanistan next year.
During a lightning visit to the front line in Helmand province, the prime minister announced plans to double a training programme for the Afghan army to reduce its reliance on British and American troops.
“Stepping that up means the Afghans themselves take responsibility for their own affairs,” Brown said.
He also hinted that there could be a temporary increase in UK troops to support and mentor local forces, with government sources suggesting that Taliban fighters could even be granted an “amnesty” in the effort to bring the conflict to a close.
The announcement will be interpreted by opposition politicians as an attempt to lay the groundwork for a highprofile commitment next year to begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan.
Although there is little sign that the war is being won, with this month’s democratic elections blighted by low turn-out and claims of corruption, Brown is under intense pressure to enter the general election campaign in a position to say the mission in Afghanistan is reaching its conclusion.
During yesterday’s trip, he did not specifically refer to an exit strategy or timetable for withdrawal, but moves to train more local forces would pave the way for British troops to be sent home.
It follows a bloody summer during which the number of British service personnel killed in Afghanistan has risen to 208, prompting mounting public hostility to the conflict. Recent opinion polls suggest that two in three British voters believe that UK forces should withdraw from the region. Read More
(READ): Lockerbie bomber ‘set free for oil’…
Source: Times Online
The British government decided it was “in the overwhelming interests of the United Kingdom” to make Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, eligible for return to Libya, leaked ministerial letters reveal.
Gordon Brown’s government made the decision after discussions between Libya and BP over a multi-million-pound oil exploration deal had hit difficulties. These were resolved soon afterwards.
The letters were sent two years ago by Jack Straw, the justice secretary, to Kenny MacAskill, his counterpart in Scotland, who has been widely criticised for taking the formal decision to permit Megrahi’s release.
The correspondence makes it plain that the key decision to include Megrahi in a deal with Libya to allow prisoners to return home was, in fact, taken in London for British national interests.
Edward Davey, the Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman, said: “This is the strongest evidence yet that the British government has been involved for a long time in talks over al-Megrahi in which commercial considerations have been central to their thinking.”
Two letters dated five months apart show that Straw initially intended to exclude Megrahi from a prisoner transfer agreement with Colonel Muammar Gadaffi, under which British and Libyan prisoners could serve out their sentences in their home country.
In a letter dated July 26, 2007, Straw said he favoured an option to leave out Megrahi by stipulating that any prisoners convicted before a specified date would not be considered for transfer.
Downing Street had also said Megrahi would not be included under the agreement.
Straw then switched his position as Libya used its deal with BP as a bargaining chip to insist the Lockerbie bomber was included.
The exploration deal for oil and gas, potentially worth up to £15 billion, was announced in May 2007. Six months later the agreement was still waiting to be ratified. Read More
(READ): Brown pledges extra troop support…
Source: BBC
Gordon Brown has promised more support for UK troops in Afghanistan, during a surprise visit to the country.
Speaking from Helmand province, he pledged greater protection for troops from roadside bombs, which hours earlier claimed another British life.
His plans, which include the training of another 50,000 Afghan soldiers, came in the wake of criticism that UK forces are under-resourced.
The Conservatives said he was “woefully slow” in properly equipping soldiers.
As the prime minister was flying home from Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence announced the death of the 208th UK soldier to have died in Afghanistan since 2001.
A Royal Marine was killed on foot patrol in Helmand early on Saturday morning.
On his fourth visit to the country this year, the prime minister said that getting another 50,000 Afghan troops trained by November 2010 would enable them to “take more responsibility for their own affairs”. Read More
(READ): Teen Lotto Winner Faces Bankruptcy…
Source: Newser.com
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Newser Summary) – Callie Rogers was once the UK’s second-youngest lottery winner, coming into more than $3 million in 2003 at the age of sixteen. Now at 22, she’s attempted suicide twice, drives a secondhand car, and works three jobs to avoid bankruptcy, the Mail reports. Rogers—who has two children with a criminal—told a friend, “’My life is a shambles and hopefully now it has all gone I can find some happiness.”
(READ): ‘Recession Is Over’ In The UK…
Source: SKY News
The UK recession is at an end with business confidence enjoying a record recovery, according to one trade body.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) said optimism among professionals had moved to its highest level for two years.
The Business Confidence Monitor survey found “a remarkable upturn” in confidence in the banking sector while positive signs in the housing market have also helped boost optimism for property firms.
The IT sector was the most optimistic, followed by banking, finance and insurance firms.
Overall, the confidence measure jumped from minus 28.2 to 4.8, the largest quarterly improvement since the survey began in 2003. Read More
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