Please listen - the last words of Rifleman Thatcher (RIP)

In 2009 in Sangin, I was always impressed by the bravery and humour of the young Rifleman. Maybe as I was a stranger to many of them taht seemed happy to chat, in the queue at lunch or waiting for the weekly phone call, running round the helipad or looking for a book in the makeshift library. one thing i did notice was that even if the type of conflict had changed, the weapons and the threat - Rifleman are still rifleman and for every young man I met in 2009, I could see in them the same attributes taht I had seen in young Rifleman I had served with in Cyprus, Germany, Belfast, Crossmaglen, Bosnia or Kosovo. The same willingness to question, to laugh, mischief always close but also you knew taht your could depend on them.

I never wrote a letter like Rifleman Thatcher did, I did not need to, most of my time was spent in the slightly safer surrounds of the Operations Room in Sangin, but if I had I am not sure my words would have been as passionate, eloquent or thoughtful as those of this young man.

Please listen here as Benedict Cumberbatch reads the last letter from Cyrus to his family, no doubt that if he ad survived taht summer of hell, he would not have been a senior NCO within the Rifles, our Regiment lost a future leader, his family lost a son and brother.

Ipswich Tory MPs insulting words

Not for the first time , our at times embarrassing Tory MP for Ipswich has decided to attack our local Labour Party, not on policy, not on how we run the council? He decided to question our patriotism - for Mt Hunt it seems to show you are patriotic, you have to at least wear a union jack face mask in parliament, if not you might as well go and live in North Korea.

Many of us, a bit older still cringe when we see the Union Jack used as a tool to show how patriotic you are, we remember when it was 'hijacked' by the likes of the National Front. Unfortunately a number of the 2019 Tory intake at Westminster seem to employ tactics the National front would have been proud of, highlighting our differences rather than promoting what we all share.

As a veteran, I could not stand quietly and allow Mr Hunt attack us over our patriotism, so I wrote to my local paper the Ipswich star, who printed the letter on Monday 29 March 2021. This is the full version of the letter that i sent to the Star.

To the Ipswich Star,

Last week in your newspaper, the MP for Ipswich, Mr Hunt used his column to explain why he was happy to vote for the Police and Crime, Sentencing and Court Bill. He then went on to accuse the Ipswich Labour Party of ridiculing the bill, in particular the part that proposed tougher punishments  on those who desecrate our War Memorials. i found his comments both very insulting and unjust.

I am not only a member of the Ipswich Labour Party, but also a veteran and the Armed Forces Champion for Ipswich Borough Council, now the protection of war memorials may not be my top priority as Armed Forces Champion. My highest priority is in fact making sure that veterans  in Suffolk have access to the best mental health care available, just over a year ago I lost a close friend from my regiment who committed suicide, he was still serving and no one was aware that he was suffering from PTSD. That came only a year after we lost another fellow Rifleman to suicide. That along with trying to help veterans who have found themselves in prison is far more pressing issue currently for veterans.

However, I fully understand the importance of war memorials, not only to veterans but also to the families of those who have fallen. It is one of my proudest moments as a councillor in Ipswich, assisting to get a street and a square named  after two soldiers from our town who lost their lives in Northern Ireland and Afghanistan.

My own Regiment, the Royal Green Jackets, lost many men in the 41 years of our existence, all those Riflemen are remembered on various war memorial's, all over this land. I served with 2 Rifles in Afghanistan in 2009, 25 men of that Battle Group never returned home, all their names are on the memorial at the National Arboretum . On that same memorial to those from the Armed Forces who have died in conflict since 1945 are the names of Paul Harding and Mark Hale. Paul was a close friend, my mentor, my hero, who rose to the rank of Major only to die, leading from the front in Basra, Iraq. Captain Mark Hale, I only knew for a short time, but we hit it off straight away, we were from the same era, shared many of the same views on the army, on the 12 August 2009, we had dinner together in the dusty mess tent in Sangin, Afghanistan, less than a day later, he was dead, killed by an IED, whilst helping others.

I often visit the National Arboretum in Staffordshire, I find both their names on the memorial, trace my fingers over the letters of their names and when I do that my emotions are mixed, often both sorrow and anger, and then I sit on a bench by the Royal Green Jackets Memorial and I am often close to tears, those memorials are important to me  - would I forget those two fellow Rifleman if the memorial was not there? No - but it is important to me, my comrades, their families, that there is a proper memorial and hope the presence of those memorials reminds politicians and national leaders that there are deadly consequences when you send soldiers into conflict.

So Mr Hunt, as a local Labour Party member and also a veteran, I fully understand the importance of War Memorials and I certainly need no lesson from you on that subject.

I would ask you to think carefully in the future when writing such comments, there are many Labour members  and voters, who are veterans, and your words insulted all of them.

Cll Alasdair Ross

Rushmere Ward

Ipswich

 

Mark Hale 

Paul Harding

Elections – From Rushmere Ward, Ipswich to Sangin Afghanistan (and then back to Rushmere)

I write this new post with just a week to go after a month of long, hard campaigning.

I won Rushmere Ward for the first time in 2008 that was after being the runner up in 2006 and 2007. The night of the count seems a very distant memory but I just remember the nerves, the excitement and most of all the pride in winning- even if it was only by 13 votes.

I love elections and campaigning but this election in 2012 will be very different to the election I was involved in during 2009.

That summer I found myself back with the army for a year and acting as the Operations Warrant Officer with 2 Rifles. We found ourselves based in Sangin in the Helmand Province and in seven months we had many of our regiment wounded and 25 of our battle group paid the ultimate sacrifice.

But on the 20th August 2009, the Afghan people were able to vote in their second presidential election. But instead of knocking on doors and delivering leaflets I found myself involved in planning a massive security operation that would enable the people of Sangin to vote.

The Taliban had other ideas. On the eve of the election this year, I will be delivering my last ‘Vote Ross’ leaflets but on the 19th August in 2009, I was stood with my helmet and body armour on as our base, FOB Jackson came under attack from rocket fire. A further 21 rockets would hit our camp over the next 24 hours.

Election day this year, will see me up in the early hours, delivering leaflets, knocking on doors but in Sangin, I spent the morning running up the stairs in the Fire Support tower helping replenish ammunition as we came under constant attack. So heavy was the fighting that we fired a total of 12 Javelin ant-tank missiles at the enemy – just so people could use their democratic right to vote.




From early afternoon though to the early hours of the next morning, I was in the Operations room as we continued to protect Sangin, it was not easy and we lost two men that day. Private Young and Sgt Macalese. I had got to know Mac quite well and we used to sit and try and do the crossword together back in the UK. He was highly rated and would have gone far in the army, his father had been in the SAS and was part of the team that was involved in the Iranian Embassy siege.



Sgt 'Mac'

Their loss was felt by many but we had to continue, we had a mission.

In 2008, I gained 1,026 votes as 2,333 people voted in Rushmere, the cost? A few hundred pounds on leaflets, a few blisters and two dog bites.

In 2009 in Sangin, 434 people voted, some of the bravest people I had ever met, they had been threatened by the Taliban, the town had been under attack for over 24 hours but they still went and placed their cross and handed in their ballot paper. The cost? Two dead from 2 Rifles, our camp hit by 22 rockets and in defence we had fired millions of bullets, artillery rounds and 12 missiles.




You do not have to vote in this country, you have that choice because in 1939 our ancestors fought to maintain our freedom but do not take the right to vote lightly, there are many places in this world where the right to vote is still being fought for.

On the 8th April I visited the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, on the Armed Forces Memorial I saw inscribed the names of Private Young and Sgt Macalese. I will remember that they gave their lives to help 434 Afghans vote. Democracy does not come without sacrifice.

Why we need a rethink on resettlement for the Armed Forces

Why we need a rethink on resettlement

I have always been a Labour supporter. Perhaps not surprising when both my parents were Labour councillors. But I also had an admiration for the Army that came through my late father who was proud of his time both in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, where he served in the Korean war, but also afterwards where he joined the TA in Ipswich.

He was very proud of me when I joined the Army at 16 (though disappointed that I joined the Royal Green Jackets rather than a Highland regiment).

I went on to spend 24 years in the regiment, much of it under a Tory government. The Labour Party at that time was not popular in the Forces, mainly due to uncertainty about our aims in Northern Ireland. But let’s not be fooled into thinking the Tories were the solders’ friend.

A winter tour of the Falklands in 1988 saw most of us wearing uniform and using equipment that we had purchased ourselves. I remember the local East Anglian Daily Times journalist visiting us in West Falkland and surprised to see that other than my trousers and beret all other clothing and my boots had been purchased myself.

The end of my career saw a Labour Government win control and straight away a noticeable change when Labour Ministers visited military units. George Robertson, John Reid and even Tony Blair wanted to speak to military men and women. This was far different from when we used to have Tory ministers visit. A visit by Heseltine to Germany in 1985 led to a number of us being hidden away on some range in Sennelager in case we said the wrong thing, and the only chance of seeing Soames when Armed Forces minister was if you ended up washing up in the Officers’ Mess when he was having lunch.

But the Tories have learnt from Labour and now you will see Cameron mixing with Rifleman and others in the dust and the dirt. But I suspect this is just for show.

I went back to the Army in 2009 and had the honour to be part of 2 Rifles as we attempted (and succeeded) in making Sangin a safer place. Improvement came with a high penalty to pay in terms of those who were killed or badly injured over that summer of intense fighting, but what I saw was undoubted bravery and sacrifice of Rifleman who had not changed since when I was serving the first time.

I am still in touch with many who are still serving. When I speak to them I sense a fear – a fear of the unknown. Will their regiment even exist by 2020? Where will they be based? Will they have to uproot their family again? Will they be made redundant? Will the resettlement package enable them to make the transition back into Civvy Street smoothly?

For some it will be even harder. For example those who are suffering from injuries they picked up in Afghanistan or Iraq; injuries which can be physical and mental. Or those who have chosen to make Germany their chosen home, marrying Germans and even sending their children to the local German school.

The Government has made initial statements about which camps will close and where those soldiers will move to. So from a thriving and busy German Garrison town they may find themselves in a remote part of Norfolk on an old RAF camp, or in a newly built camp in Scotland which has no history or experience of having a military community on its doorstep.

My experience of resettlement in not a good one. The role of resettlement officer is just deemed to be a side-line for the education officer. The civilian advisers are no better – I was an infantry Warrant Officer when I left and as far as my adviser was concerned that meant I could be a warehouse manager! If he had asked my QM or even the Rifleman in the Recce Platoon of 2RGJ they would say the last job I should have is to be in charge of stores!

In 2002 the resettlement scheme had problems. I know the Government sought to improve these but I worry about how it will cope now, with thousands likely to be made redundant or leaving as they see no future for themselves in the Armed Forces. And how will the scheme cope with those who want to remain in Germany?

I am not sure the Government has not thought any of this through and that is why I am very glad that ‘Labour Friends of the Forces’ has taken resettlement as its first major campaign issue. If you have had an experience of the programme please do tell us here. Now more than ever, at a time of cut backs and redundancies, we need to get this service right.

The Coalition Government is just interested in cutting numbers and cutting costs, with no concern for those soldiers and their families who have to either move to a new home or leave the military. This is yet another betrayal of our Armed Forces by this Government.

We MUST Remember them.

We MUST and will Remember them

Swift and Bold

...and hello Ipswich

In my last post, I said goodbye Sangin, Afghanistan and in this one I say "Hello, Ipswich"
My Labour colleagues managed to get me a welcome home announcement on the electric scoreboard at Ipswich during half time in the match last Saturday against Derby County. A nice touch and an even better welcome was being able to see us win our first three points of the season!
Good to be coming home, but I will never forget serving with 2 Rifles in Afghanistan as our commander stated, "it was the fight of our lives". the tragic news from Helmand today reminds us all in the Rifles of what we went through and watching the news today it made us realise the roller coaster ride our families went throughwhilst we were away.

Granted a 'Leave of Absence'

Last Wednesday the Full Ipswich Borough Council granted me a 'leave of absence' for 11 months. this will enable me to keep my place on the council if I am mobilised in January to join 2 Rifles on a planned tour of Afghanistan.


I thought it may have been a quick decision, and as I had to leave the chamber, I did not think I would be out of the room long. But a debate was had and two of the Lib Dems abstained and one even spoke against allowing me to retain my post.


I can understand some people finding it difficult to vote for me to leave if they are against our presence in Afghanistan but I was surprised that they actually spoke against it.


But I am led to believe that our group leader, David Ellsmere spoke very powerfully for me to be allowed to stay on as a councilor and also from the opposite benches, Steven Wells also spoke up for me and so it was nice to have cross party support.


My Labour colleagues will continue to campaign in Rushmere whilst I am away and take on my ward work and the two Conservative councillors for the ward have also offered to take on any outstanding case work.


I am not sure when I am off, or even if I am definitely going but until I do I will continue to work for my constituents, on Saturday I was delivering budget leaflets in the ward and this week I have 3 committee meetings at Grafton House.


Once I have definite news on my mobilisation I will inform my constituents.