Lords debates Armed Forces' sacrifices
11 November 2011
Members of the Lords, including many with personal experience of serving in the Armed Forces, honoured all those who have made sacrifices to defend our country in a debate on Thursday 10 November
Lord Selkirk (Conservative) tabled the debate. His connections with the Armed Forces are deep. Lord Selkirk visited British troops in Afghanistan and is an honorary Air Commodore. Members of his family were killed in action when serving in the British Armed Services in the Second World War. Lord Selkirk is also President of the largest British charity which provides houses for servicemen and women who are disabled, the Scottish Veterans Garden City Association.
Speaking ahead of the debate, Lord Selkirk said:
“This is a time to remember everyone who has served this country with dedication and sacrifice and to honour our responsibilities towards them.
“We need to rededicate ourselves to continuing the unfinished work of those who died in sustaining the cause of freedom and promoting justice. We owe it to them that their actions should continue to inspire future generations.
“We must not forget those who are left behind – their families, and those who are wounded and disabled. We must look after their practical needs.
“Remembrance itself takes many forms. We must stop the desecration of our monuments and we must continue to tell the stories of the people to whom we owe our way of life. We will hear from several people who are intimately involved with the life of our Armed Services in this debate. Their stories and tributes will, I hope, inspire future generations.”
Lord Selkirk callled on the Government to take action to stop the increasingly widespread desecration of war monuments by vandals who sell the metal to scrap metal dealers.
Contributions to the debate included:
- Lord Ramsbotham (Crossbench), former General in the British Army
- Lord Rosser (Labour), Opposition Spokesperson for Defence
- Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat), former Defence Minister
- Lord Ashcroft (Conservative), Government adviser, Military Bases in Cyprus
- Baroness Dean of Thornton-le-Fylde (Labour), who chairs the All Party Defence Group in the Lords and is a former member of the Armed Forces Pay Review Body
- Baroness Flather (Crossbench), council member of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust
Lord Soley (Labour), Lord Parekh (Labour), Lord Bilimoria (Crossbench), Lord Bew (Crossbench), Viscount Younger of Leckie (Conservative), Lord Loomba (Liberal Democrat), Lord Glasman (Labour), Lord Cormack (Conservative) and the Bishop of St.Edmundsbury and Ipswich also took part in the debate.
Lord Astor of Hever (Conservative) responded on behalf of the Government.
Further information
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