Bay MP Supports Territorial Army

Bay MP Adrian Sanders has joined a petition in the House of Commons to praise the contribution of the Territorial Army to Britain’s defence forces and calling on the Government to drop its plans to cut the TA budget by £23million.

Ministers recently announced the cuts to training for the Territorial Army in an attempt to ‘reprioritise’ funding for the war in Afghanistan.  Mr Sanders has accused them of short sightedness and failing to consider the future of the TA.

Minister Bill Rammell announced the suspension of much of the paid training for the TA, preventing many volunteers from keeping up with their training regimes.

Adrian said: “The Government is cutting a small amount of the defence budget, but it is a cut that will have a devastating effect upon the vital contribution the Territorial Army makes.  This will hit the readiness of the TA and also recruitment rates.  The Minister has seriously misjudged the mood of the TA and the public and I will be doing all I can in Parliament to get their funding reinstated.”