Armed forces 'suffering from low morale'
According to a new survey by the Ministry of Defence, the Armed Forces are suffering from low morale and have concerns over military kit on the front line.
The survey of 10,500 Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force personnel makes grim reading for the government and the management of the armed forces.
Opposition MPs and military figures have been quick to criticise the government's management skills following the survey, saying that Labour has broken the military covenant – the long-held principle that the country has a duty of care to its armed forces in return for their service to the nation.
The report comes after claims that Gordon Brown ordered ministers to cover up a report by former Ministry of Defence aide Bernard Gray which laid bare the waste of £2.5 billion every year on bungled equipment contracts, from helicopters to aircraft carriers.
Last night, Lord Guthrie, former chief of the defence staff, said: "I have no doubt that much of the personal kit is as effective and as good as it can be. But there are serious problems over protection of helicopters and about support aircraft."
Yesterday (August 10th), a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan spoke out about management skills in the armed forces, which have allowed hundreds of armoured vehicles to be "parked up doing nothing" when they are desperately needed by commanders in Afghanistan.
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I'm not surprise morale is low if they don't have the equipment to protect their lives! One of those studies that has you thinking "no shit Sherlock!"
Low morale in the troop ranks leads to non-battle related casualties. On top of that when troops lose their confidence in their assigned equipment they lose the eagerness and resolve to fight effectively.
I agree with the above. If you haven't confidence in your protective equipment and are maybe unsure why you are fighting it's bound to hit morale.
I echo the sentiments of many regarding the lack/poor distribution of quality equipment but there is another reason for poor moral. It is the lack of attention to the mental welfare of those affected by our current conflicts. As the founder of FLOW for ALL I am bound to be biased but the point I make here is born from comments over many years and the new wave of PTSD about to ravage our troops.
To my knowledge there is no structured provision made for those affected by war to release the pent up emotions of those affected by war. It is not just those who are on the front line but those who support the teeth arms, those on duty back in the rear echelons and the families and friends of those serving. We, the great British public, have a duty of care to support our troops, even though we may not agree with the war we are surely duty bound to actively support our troops.
The sites of www.FLOWforALL.org provide such a support mechanism by allowing anyone to write about their feelings and express their emotions by sending in their poems and stories which we publish on the appropriate site. The forum at www.FlowsForum.com also provides a place for people to chat about issues which they find difficult to deal with or about things that are getting them down.
Until people find outlets for their emotions/fears/worries they will fester and the issues grow and consume the person. Until our troops are provided with the correct equipment and enough of it, these problems will get worse. That awful phrase “Catch 22” seems to looming in the shadow of our government!