Today in the House of Commons, Liberal Democrat MP Bob Russell put forward a Ten Minute Rule Bill calling for a change to immigration law which would grant indefinite leave to enter and remain in Britain for Gurkhas.

This is part of a wider campaign to give Gurkhas fairer rights and recognition. Despite being recognised as outstanding and well-respected members of the Armed Forces, and serving in numerous operations around the world, at present many Gurkhas are prevented from claiming equal rights.   

Read more to see the full text of his speech:

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Commenting on General Petraeus’ comments today on British troop levels in Iraq, Liberal Democrat Shadow Defence Secretary, Nick Harvey said: 

Gordon Brown last year announced reductions to our presence in Basra which have yet to materialise. The sad truth appears to be that our troops are being used to serve the increasingly desperate political strategies of the White House and Number 10.  Read more »

Commenting on a written statement to the House yesterday that put forward new plans to send a British battalion of 600 soldiers to Kosovo as part of a NATO mission, Liberal Democrat Shadow Defence Secretary Nick Harvey MP expressed his concerns:

With our troops already overstretched by operations in both Iraq and Afghanistan, this further deployment will push the Army to its limits. Read more »

Monday saw Defence Questions in the House to the Secretary of State for Defence.

Concerned over the increasing strains placed on our Armed Forces and the detrimental impact ongoing operations on two-fronts might have on our future capabilities and the welfare and morale of our troops, Nick raised the following question:

 Nick Harvey (Shadow Secretary of State for Defence, Defence; North Devon, Liberal Democrat)

The Government argue that our troops are stretched but not overstretched, yet the drawdown from Iraq has been postponed and serious recruitment difficulties cannot be entirely masked by a massive increase in recruitment from the Commonwealth. For how much longer can we operate beyond defence planning assumptions without doing damage to our future capabilities? Do we really have the spare capacity to undertake further commitments—in Kosovo, for example—and if we do, what lessons have we learned from Iraq and Afghanistan about making it clear that we are going in for a time-limited shift and not taking on another open-ended commitment? Read more »

Responding to comments from senior army officer General Sir David Richards that the Ministry of Defence feels the issue of compensation payouts for service personnel should be re-examined, Liberal Democrat Shadow Defence Secretary, Nick Harvey said:

“If General Richards is correct that both the armed forces and the Ministry of Defence want to look further at this issue, then that is very welcome. Read more »

Commenting on Des Browne’s announcement today that British troop numbers in Iraq will only be reduced ‘if conditions allow’, Liberal Democrat Shadow Defence Secretary, Nick Harvey said:

This statement fails to provide any certainty for the future of our hard-pressed forces in Iraq.

 Why did the Prime Minister rush to announce troop withdrawals last year if the situation in southern Iraq is so unpredictable? Read more »