Night of long knives needed at the MoD

I WELCOMED reading Tom Richmond’s column (Yorkshire Post, May 21). He put exactly the same interpretation on Liam Fox’s leaks as I did.

He is self-serving and I consider that he expresses views that are really designed to maintain our hugely inefficient Ministry of Defence in more or less its present condition.

The Ministry of Defence employs about 80,000 people, which compares interestingly with a reported personnel strength for the total UK Armed Forces as reported in August 2010 of 194,440 professional (Regular) troops and 39,420 volunteer forces.

This means that there is one member of staff in the MoD for about every three members of the Armed Forces. I think it is fair to take a hard look at what the MoD does.

One of its roles that it likes to puff up its feathers about is that of procurement.

My blood has boiled many times when I have heard about the colossal and catastrophic failures that they have managed to engineer in this area.

Typically, I believe elements of our indigenous arms industry (and sometimes foreign suppliers too) entice the MoD into running procurements that lead to the production of completely unnecessary (and especially complex) weapons and weapons systems.

I would say that the MoD is deeply, fundamentally and extremely unfit for purpose and I think a real Night of the Long Knives is long overdue for it.

It needs a profound culture change and a reduction in size of a factor of about 10 and it needs it fast. It is a colossal drain on taxpayers, and worst of all, it isn’t doing the right things.

From: Elisabeth Baker, chairman, West Yorkshire Committee, ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, Broomhill Crescent, Leeds.

THANK you for your support for Andy McMenemy and his Challenge 66 – running 66 Ultra Marathons in 66 days in aid of ABF The Soldiers’ Charity (formerly the Army Benevolent Fund) which ended on Friday (Yorkshire Post, May 21).

Your readers might be interested to know that the charity helps not only soldiers and their families during active service, but gives lifetime support to serving and retired soldiers alike (both Regulars and Territorials) and to their families whenever there is need. The heavy demands placed on the charity already can only increase in the future.

Andy McMenemy has more than played his part by running and breaking the Guinness World Record for Ultra Marathons.

Anyone who would like to show their support both for him and for our servicemen and women can do so by donating through www.justgiving.com/challenge66 or by sending donations to ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, Queen Elizabeth Barracks, Strensall, York YO32 5SW.

Warranties are too short

From: David H Rhodes, Keble Park North, Bishopthorpe, York.

WHEN should warranties on goods be necessary, and applicable on what timescale? Usually for electrical products, there is a year long manufacturers guarantee with the ability to purchase a warranty for extended coverage.

These can be purchased in three year or five year packages. Surely this is a misnomer as they overlap the guarantee period of one year and are thus effectively for two years and four years respectively.

Surely a manufacturer has more confidence in his product that it would last more than a year in good working order. If so, why not a three-year guarantee? Not unreasonable for the likes of televisions with a reasonable capital outlay.

I believe that Dysons offer a five year guarantee on some or all of their cleaners which indicates a very high confidence in their quality products.

It would be nice to see the likes of Comet rise to the challenge and reassure their customers with an automatic three-year repair coverage at no extra cost on certain goods. Currently, their fixed price repair service for a new TV screen costs nearly as much as a new television. And, if the TV is only two-years-old, this represents poor value for money.

Immature reaction

From: J Brennan, Ravens Walk, Conisbrough, Doncaster.

I REFER to your article “Council facing years of paralysis” (Yorkshire Post, May 16). I cannot believe that the Labour councillors are about to plunge Doncaster into chaos after their recent election gains. This is in my opinion a very immature reaction which will go down very badly with the people of Doncaster.

To describe this move as “constructive” is laughable. Destructive would be a better word. Mayor Davies offered the Labour group two seats on the Cabinet with the possibility of a third later on if the need arose.

This would have given them parity with the rest of the Cabinet, and would have been a very workable solution, which would have certainly led towards “a better Doncaster” which the Labour group claims to want. This offer was turned down flat, which demonstrates the mindset of Labour.

To describe the Cabinet as Right-wing and very Right-wing is ridiculous. You would have to be more Left-wing than Lenin to believe that. To the contrary, the Cabinet members are honest, middle of the road people, whose only objective is to rid Doncaster Council of the waste with which it is riddled.