Labour has ‘failed’ armed forces
By Sam Dale
The former Conservative defence secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind has accused Labour of having “failed” the armed forces with resources.
Launching an armed forces manifesto in Stirling in Scotland Sir Malcolm said a Tory government would not cut the defence budget “in the current year”.
He said: “What has been extraordinary about the Labour Government under Blair and Brown is that for most of the last 12 years we’ve been at war in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan.
“If that’s the foreign policy they wanted to pursue, they should have ensured our armed forces had the resources, capability and equipment to do that job to the maximum of their ability.
“There are many reasons for a change of government but one of the most acute is we have some of the best armed forces in the world.
“Gordon Brown more than anyone, as chancellor, then as prime minister, has failed. For that reason, he deserves to be driven from office.”
Sir Malcolm was critical of plans to scrap Trident, particularly attacking the SNP.
