Local LibDems launch 'Honour our Armed Forces' campaign

12.22.25pm BST (GMT +0100) Mon 24th Aug 2009

LibDem leader Nick Clegg MP in Afghanistan

Liberal Democrats in Plymouth are launching a campaign to honour Britain's armed forces and they are asking local people to sign up in support.

The city's LibDems are calling for lower ranks and NCOs to have their pay boosted and linked to police pay. They also want to see a renewed commitment to long-term medical provision for all service personnel, including for post-traumatic stress disorder. And they are calling for a full-scale review of defence policy, to combat the effects of military overstretch.

The call, made by LibDem parliamentary spokesman for the new Plymouth Moor View constituency Stuart Bonar, comes ahead of the party's annual conference in Bournemouth next month. At the conference, Liberal Democrats from across Britain will discuss and vote on a new package of policies aimed at helping the country's servicemen and women.

Commenting, Stuart Bonar said, "Plymouth is a military city and I'm from a military family. My father was a Royal Marine, my brother was in the Army Air Corps, and my brother-in-law has served in Afghanistan.

"It angers me that over 60,000 serving military personnel, including soldiers on the frontline in Afghanistan , are paid less than the starting salary of a police officer or firefighter. Police officers and firefighters deserve good pay, but so do our service personnel.

"14,000 British servicemen and women have been injured in the last four years alone. They deserve the best possible care for as long as they need it.

"Our armed forces are overstretched. There is a huge mismatch between the resources they get and the demands placed upon them. We need to take a step back and have a strategic security and defence review. It's incredible that the last review took place in 1998. The world has changed since then.

"I know the Government has made noises about having a review, but it is kicking it off into the future. We need it now. Those men and women in Afghanistan deserve better."

Stuart is asking local people to sign up to show their support for the campaign. He will be at the LibDem conference next month and wants to be able to show other LibDems from across the country the level of support there is in Plymouth for Britain 's armed forces.

More information is available at http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/armedforces which is also where people can sign up to support the campaign.