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Elite forces face ‘barmy’ cuts
BRITAIN’S two elite fighting formations — the Royal Marines and the army’s airborne brigade — face deep cuts and a partial merger after this year’s general election.
Defence sources say that hundreds of troops from 3 Commando Brigade, which includes three Royal Marine infantry battalions, and 16 Air Assault Brigade, built around soldiers from the Parachute Regiment, are at risk of being axed as part of the next round of defence cuts.
Officials at the Ministry of Defence are understood to be considering a plan to create a joint airborne and amphibious force, which would see the marines put under the control of the army.
This weekend Major-General Julian Thompson, one of Britain’s most distinguished marines, who led 3 Commando during the Falklands War, branded the plan “barmy” and suggested it was being pushed by “enemies” of the military’s two high-readiness brigades from within the MoD.
“It reduces the country’s capability to react,” he said. “Why, if we are going to save money, get rid of the best people? Both the air assault brigade and the Royal Marines have their enemies within the defence establishment, including in the army.”
Senior military figures are braced for further swingeing defence cuts whatever the result of the election, after the Conservatives and Labour failed to pledge to maintain defence spending at 2% of GDP. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has calculated that to meet the Tories’ target of clearing the deficit by 2018 and to raise the cash for promised tax cuts, spending in unprotected areas, including defence, will need to be slashed by 26% after 2015-16.
David Cameron has pledged that the regular army “will stay at its current size” and military figures believe neither the Royal Navy nor the RAF can be shrunk much further without leaving serious capability gaps.
But this has exposed the Royal Marines, which are part of the navy but have survived the cuts since 2010 relatively unscathed.
The Royal Marines and the army's airborne brigade face a partial merger
Both 3 Commando Brigade and 16 Air Assault Brigade are also regarded as vulnerable, because they have their own units of artillery, engineers, medics and logistical experts that support their regular infantry battalions.
For instance, 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery — “the Commando Gunners” — provides artillery support for the marines, while 7 Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery performs the same role, using the same type of field guns, for 16 Air Assault Brigade.
Similarly, 3 Commando includes the commando engineers, while the airborne brigade uses 23 Engineer Regiment (Air Assault).
This duplication of so-called “enabling” units is regarded as “fair game” in the next round of cuts, according to a senior defence source.
Under one option the army would incorporate the marines into an elite military force alongside the Parachute Regiment and the combined force would share the same artillery, engineers and other support units.
Cuts to the Royal Marines and paratroopers are likely to be fiercely resisted, particularly as they provide about 70% of successful recruits for the special forces.
“The marines and paras are not happy and are worried it will dilute their unique specialist capabilities and ethos,” revealed a military source.
http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/article1513873.ece?shareToken=927c29fd62940d8cee9fd708cbb71aa9
BRITAIN’S two elite fighting formations — the Royal Marines and the army’s airborne brigade — face deep cuts and a partial merger after this year’s general election.
Defence sources say that hundreds of troops from 3 Commando Brigade, which includes three Royal Marine infantry battalions, and 16 Air Assault Brigade, built around soldiers from the Parachute Regiment, are at risk of being axed as part of the next round of defence cuts.
Officials at the Ministry of Defence are understood to be considering a plan to create a joint airborne and amphibious force, which would see the marines put under the control of the army.
This weekend Major-General Julian Thompson, one of Britain’s most distinguished marines, who led 3 Commando during the Falklands War, branded the plan “barmy” and suggested it was being pushed by “enemies” of the military’s two high-readiness brigades from within the MoD.
“It reduces the country’s capability to react,” he said. “Why, if we are going to save money, get rid of the best people? Both the air assault brigade and the Royal Marines have their enemies within the defence establishment, including in the army.”
Senior military figures are braced for further swingeing defence cuts whatever the result of the election, after the Conservatives and Labour failed to pledge to maintain defence spending at 2% of GDP. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has calculated that to meet the Tories’ target of clearing the deficit by 2018 and to raise the cash for promised tax cuts, spending in unprotected areas, including defence, will need to be slashed by 26% after 2015-16.
David Cameron has pledged that the regular army “will stay at its current size” and military figures believe neither the Royal Navy nor the RAF can be shrunk much further without leaving serious capability gaps.
But this has exposed the Royal Marines, which are part of the navy but have survived the cuts since 2010 relatively unscathed.
The Royal Marines and the army's airborne brigade face a partial merger
Both 3 Commando Brigade and 16 Air Assault Brigade are also regarded as vulnerable, because they have their own units of artillery, engineers, medics and logistical experts that support their regular infantry battalions.
For instance, 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery — “the Commando Gunners” — provides artillery support for the marines, while 7 Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery performs the same role, using the same type of field guns, for 16 Air Assault Brigade.
Similarly, 3 Commando includes the commando engineers, while the airborne brigade uses 23 Engineer Regiment (Air Assault).
This duplication of so-called “enabling” units is regarded as “fair game” in the next round of cuts, according to a senior defence source.
Under one option the army would incorporate the marines into an elite military force alongside the Parachute Regiment and the combined force would share the same artillery, engineers and other support units.
Cuts to the Royal Marines and paratroopers are likely to be fiercely resisted, particularly as they provide about 70% of successful recruits for the special forces.
“The marines and paras are not happy and are worried it will dilute their unique specialist capabilities and ethos,” revealed a military source.
http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/article1513873.ece?shareToken=927c29fd62940d8cee9fd708cbb71aa9
