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08/10/2009
Tories To Cut MoD Costs By Quarter
The Conservatives will ask civil servants to draw up plans to slash Ministry of Defence (MoD) costs by 25% in order to better focus resources on the front line.
The savings will be made in bureaucracy with the Tories insisting there will not be a cut in the defence budget and that there are no plans to reduce the number of military personnel.
They have however pledged to cut Whitehall budgets by a third.
Shadow Defence Secretary Liam Fox (pictured) is expected to tell the party's conference later: "Now we have 99,000 in the Army and 85,000 civilians in the MoD. Some things will have to change and believe me they will."
Dr Fox will also tell delegates in Manchester that the war in Afghanistan is "winnable".
He will demand that the government "better define what we mean by winning and how we get there".
He is expected to say: "Labour will leave office not only having failed in their duty to properly support our armed forces in conflict, but the economic calamity they leave in their wake will make the task of rebuilding our security in a dangerous world all the more difficult."
In response to Labour accusing the Conservatives of undermining the morale of troops over funding issues Dr Fox is also going on the attack: "When I raise legitimate equipment concerns in my role as Shadow Defence Secretary, I am not harming morale.
"Not having the equipment when you need it, that is what harms morale."
General Sir Richard Dannatt, the former Chief of the General Staff, will today be formally named as an adviser to the Tories.
(GK/BMcC)
The savings will be made in bureaucracy with the Tories insisting there will not be a cut in the defence budget and that there are no plans to reduce the number of military personnel.
They have however pledged to cut Whitehall budgets by a third.
Shadow Defence Secretary Liam Fox (pictured) is expected to tell the party's conference later: "Now we have 99,000 in the Army and 85,000 civilians in the MoD. Some things will have to change and believe me they will."
Dr Fox will also tell delegates in Manchester that the war in Afghanistan is "winnable".
He will demand that the government "better define what we mean by winning and how we get there".
He is expected to say: "Labour will leave office not only having failed in their duty to properly support our armed forces in conflict, but the economic calamity they leave in their wake will make the task of rebuilding our security in a dangerous world all the more difficult."
In response to Labour accusing the Conservatives of undermining the morale of troops over funding issues Dr Fox is also going on the attack: "When I raise legitimate equipment concerns in my role as Shadow Defence Secretary, I am not harming morale.
"Not having the equipment when you need it, that is what harms morale."
General Sir Richard Dannatt, the former Chief of the General Staff, will today be formally named as an adviser to the Tories.
(GK/BMcC)
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Northern Ireland WeatherToday:It will be cloudy again throughout the day. Mainly dry in the morning, but patchy drizzle in places, becoming more widespread and persistent in the afternoon. Freshening southwesterly winds. Maximum temperature 12 °C.Tonight:Cloudy with a spell of heavy rain pushing south through late evening and the early hours, followed by some clear spells. Minimum temperature 6 °C.
