Sunday 17 October 2010

The 'Military Covenant' and SDSR

In the military, we (apparently) have something called 'The Military Covenant'.  This is "an informal understanding, rather than a legally-enforceable deal, but it is nevertheless treated with great seriousness within the services" - especially when we can hold others to a higher standard and we aren't shy of using it as a virtual weapon to beat politicians and the media with it when we need to. And this is perfectly fine - we don't have a union and frankly the current wave of good feeling towards the Armed Forces will soon expire (once the cuts start to bite...) so it will become a weapon we will see being deployed more frequently.

One of the things the covenant is supposed to do is ensure that "in putting the needs of the Nation, The Army and others before their own, they forgo some of the rights enjoyed by those outside the Armed Forces. So, at the very least, British soldiers should always expect the Nation and their commanders to treat them fairly, to value and respect them as individuals, and to sustain and reward them and their families." 

So how on earth does this tally with the appalling way that SDSR outcomes are being drip-fed to the media? 

Today, various newspapers are breathlessly reporting that "all but 14 from 368 Challenger 2 tanks will be mothballed" and the current system of part-payment of boarding school fees (known as 'Continuity of Education Allowance' or CEA) will "be included in the review" (Liam Fox's own words).  These words mean an awful lot to the thousands of soldiers who actually serve in those Challenger 2 regiments.  Thousands of children are educated on the back of CEA and frankly £180m is pretty small fry when one considers the 'Value for Money' (VfM) derived from educating an entire generation balanced against the total sum spent of MPs various allowances last year (£110m) or the astonishing amount spent on hotel accommodation in London (400,000+ nights) and so on.  But if it needs to go, fair enough - we need to save money.  And bear in mind that these are just two reports - the others talk about the wholescale abandonment of Joint Force Harrier (mentioned here some days back), Nimrods, Tornados (likewise), tracked guns (AS90 - likewise) and so on - there is a human dimension to all this that those feckless wankers in town care not one jot about.

What I am annoyed about is that it appears that all these petty games of one-upmanship are being played in an environment utterly divorced from the realities of the society we live in.  Where is the sound counsel advising a broader outlook?  Where are the wise men who ought to be soothing fevered brows and generally keeping everyone calm and focussed on the important things in life?  In short - where are the Civil Service grandees who are supposed to be the leavening influence between governments, and what are they doing?

Answer: they're all hurriedly looking for jobs as it seems they've been found out.  My only fear is that they will seek to divert the cuts onto hundreds and thousands of lower band Civil Servants in order to maintain their grotesquely well-paid and well-padded jobs.

PS Brilliantly I will be away on the day that SDSR is announced (Tue 20 Oct 10) but I sense that we will need time to really understand the enormity of what is to come.  And let's face it - there are going to be plenty of people in public sector work all over the country who are going to be in exactly the same position.

Friday 15 October 2010

Rumours, rumours and counter-rumours!

So what do we 'know' ahead of the announcement next Tuesday?  Well, very little.  There is a comprehensive media plan doing the rounds which warns for significant backlash from those troops heading off to Afghanistan in the next few days.  Read into that what you will...

So what do we 'know' already?  Well, the Royal Navy are going to get their grotesquely expensive carriers - although it's anyone's guess what will actually fly off them.  And it's a triumph for that awful man, Gordon Brown, who gets to look smug in front of his constituents.  Well played, Sir.  And the Royal Air Force are going to lose their Tornado force, lots of Harriers - but get their precious Typhoons in their place.  I have to say that this is entirely in line with their doctrine and so should be seen as essential 'house keeping' and is an opportunity, not a threat.

But what of the Army?  Well, we're going to lose about half our Challenger 2s - half of our AS90s - and possibly see a few mergers on the cards.  AGC are going to see some redundancies (aren't we all?) totalling around 10%.  But that will be swept up in the massive push to get lots of people to volunteer for redundancy anyway - with reduced termination rights.  However, the great men in Whitehall are very worried about forced redundancy - because of course the government is liable to be sued for changing TACOS 'on the fly'.  My god - are they worried.

I am struck by how much we owe General Dannatt - his legacy of sticking up for the 'great unwashed' (who actually go on ops, take risks, lose their lives, live in appalling SFA et al) is still with us.  I guess it's time to see what legacy his successors leave.  Probably not much - they are making sure they look after themselves.

Saturday 9 October 2010

Right dress?

We've all seen the diktats issuing forth about long-haired squaddies running amok in various FOBs and PBs - and the rather tenuous links to poor discipline, declining standards and - one assumes - the link to an outbreak of ribald soldiery breaking wind in the palaces of the mighty at some point in the very near future.  I'm all for it - what cuts the mustard in the field isn't really required when mooching about in camp.  We should wear the right badges, we should ensure our hair is kept neat and tidy, and sleeves should be rolled in the right manner (above the elbow - not lurking mid-forearm) and so on - we are a professional armed force, not some sort of partially uniformed outreach service.  It seems that some AS&D are taking this issue very seriously indeed - DRA recently AGAI'd a WO1 for being in contravention of RA Dress Regs - it seems he wasn't wearing a belt with his smock and it is heartening to see the rule being scrupulously applied to all.

Or is it?

I was in Tidworth Camp the other day and happened to drive past a Colonel wearing (and I kid you not) the old style tropps (the ones that go purple in the wash), desert boots, and a ridiculous red 'chip bag style' side hat.  He looked utterly stupid and most annoyingly, he was being accompanied by a group of more junior soldiers who were all dressed immaculately - all of whom must have thought he was a proper cunt.

So 'Sir' - take a good long hard look at yourself in the mirror before 'popping in' to work next week and roughing it with the Toms. 

Thursday 7 October 2010

Requests for Information (RFIs)

It seems that someone has posted a link to this blog on ARRSE as I have received some emails asking for more clarity (or 'granularity' to steal a word from their excellent 'Buzzwords' thread) on various issues.

So if you'd like to know more about what on earth is going on, please leave a comment and I will try and address it when I can.

Interesting news today - no AGC personnel came off the Pte-LCpl board - connect this with the estimated 10% reduction in SPS manning and things look dire indeed.  Bet they keep all their SO1s though.

The 'Strategic' Defence and Security Review

So apparently there is a plan concerning the numbers of Army personnel.  That plan is so secret that literally no-one knows what it is.  The Army's career managers in Glasgow are being kept firmly in the dark, to whit: even though an entire cohort have passed ASB filters for Conversion of Commission, the actual quotas are being 'held back' by DM(A) until such time as the outcome of the SDSR announcement is known.  Or in other words - there are people who have demonstrated - on ops - that they have the necessary commitment to pursue a worthwhile career in the Army but we are now looking at a RegC board totalling 5 (five) officers per AS&D this year.  That is patently ridiculous.

If the Army cannot even look after it's own (i.e. officers) what chance does Pte Smith and Tpr Jones have?

Or is this nothing more than the knee-jerk reaction that General Dannatt warned us about?  The question is whether General Sir Peter Wall will demonstrate the required cojones to speak up in defence of his people - apparently the Army's vital ground - or will he just simper quietly in the background in his tightly fitting service dress?

I guess we will find out towards the end of October. 

PS An interesting addendum from MS: "Now is a good time to leave the Army."  Thanks R-J - good to see our interests are being represented so magnificently.

Tuesday 5 October 2010

It's all shit, Sir!

Welcome to my blog.  I have no idea where this will go - or what I am trying to say: there is no vision of a desired endstate.

All I know is that all is not right in Puzzle Palace.  And so as we stand on the brink of the SDSR announcement (acknowledging that the 'Defence Reform Unit' will still have to actually enact the outcome), I thought i would share a biased view of what it is like to be in the Army today as we go through these changes.  And I will probably vent my spleen in all sorts of other areas as well.

But as the saying goes - "if they aren't whinging, there's something wrong."

It's all shit, Sir.