Monday, December 8, 2008

UK MoD: Resignation threat unfounded

UK MoD: Resignation threat unfounded
December 8, 2008

An article featured on Times Online claims that Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy is attempting to push through proposals to scrap the 75 Harrier jump jets currently shared between the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force and that First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Jonathon Band is threatening to resign as a result of what he sees as further Royal Navy cuts.

The Times piece completely misrepresents the views of both the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy and the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Jonathon Band. The comments attributed to them are without foundation. It is regrettable that the Times sought to publish such a piece without giving the MOD the opportunity to refute it. Since May 2008 the Ministry of Defence has been examining its equipment programme to identify potential savings and reprioritise spending to support current operations better. We will announce the outcome of the examination shortly. Its results will provide an important input to our 2009 planning round, which will be completed in Spring 2009. As is the case with planning rounds, there is always intense speculation around a variety of measures that often never come to fruition. We are determined to do more to support our people here and on the front line. To do that, we need to better prioritise our spending plans.


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