A decade of hell for the troops under investigation
THE Al-Sweady Inquiry cost the Government £31million and although it did find some instances of misconduct by British troops these were nowhere near serious enough to justify the scale of the investigation.
The inquiry was established to investigate claims that British soldiers murdered, mutilated and tortured detainees after the Battle of Danny Boy in southern Iraq, which took place more than 10 years ago.
These claims were found to be the product of “deliberate lies, reckless speculation and ingrained hostility”.
For a decade the soldiers involved have had to live with these dreadful accusations hanging over their heads while the claimants and their lawyers have benefited.
The legal bills of the nine discredited Iraqi claimants – for both this inquiry and an earlier judicial review – are thought to add up to £1.5million and were paid for by British taxpayers.
It is madness to give legal aid to foreign enemies so that they can mount cases against our Government.
If similar allegations are made in the future the Government must have the courage to support our troops and trust in their training, judgment and character.
It is surely obvious that members of our armed forces – who displayed “exemplary courage, resolution and professionalism” according to the report – are far more reliable witnesses than the members of an Iraqi insurgent group who made these dishonest claims.
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IT IS encouraging to see the Government preparing to sell more of its stake in Lloyds bank.
Having already sold off £7.4billion worth of the shares held by the Treasury the Government is going to put more of its stake in the bank on the market over the next six months.
The remarkable turnaround at Lloyds has been made possible by the strong business conditions established by the Government’s economic policies and the shrewd management of the bank.
The shares will not be sold for less than the average price of 73.6p, which the Labour Government paid for them.
This means that as well as mitigating the effects of the 2008 crash the bailout will have actually made the Government money by the time the stake has been fully sold off.
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PRINCE William could find that he’s in a bit of trouble with the wife this morning.
Chatting to a trainee hairdresser he told her that she should have a go at Kate’s “nightmare hair”.
Husbands usually know it is wise to be cautious when commenting on their wives’ locks.
