Britain's armed forces are once again facing swinging budget cuts at the hands of New Labour. The new aircraft carriers, the independent nuclear deterrent, fighter aircraft, warship numbers, and bases are all in the hazard. How? How? How can Britain find the £1 billion a year to protect the realm?How about taking Britain out the the EU? The £18 billion we'd save every year would be very welcome. Then, with economies of scale and firing a division of MOD parasites, we could replace Trident annually and throw in a new carrier group as well.
Er... Pardon me if I'm missing something glaringly obvious, but who does the UK need a major naval defense against these days? Other than pirates, that is.
ReplyDeletePirates yes... plus a hostile Russia, Communist China, and a whole raft of tyrants, dictators, and megalomaniacs bent of enslaving as much of the globe the they can get away with. The world, I'm afraid is a very dangerous place.
ReplyDeleteSpecifically, Britain needs a strong Royal Navy for three things: First, force projection. Britain is one of only two nations in the world capable of putting an expeditionary force anywhere in the world for an indefinite period of time. That requires a large, modern naval force centred around carrier groups. Second is something we take for granted is freedom of the seas; the ability of nations to travel the oceans without let or hindrance. This is not due to any sort of UN internationalism, but due to the United States and Britain's own policies of enforcing this freedom. Then third is a secure independent nuclear deterrent, which requires the Trident being able to go where it wants when it wants.