Government U-Turn on the Gurkha’s
Thanks largely to the publicity drummed up by actress Joanna Lummley our glorious leader, Herr Brown has changed his policy on allowing gurkha’s to live in the UK after their retirement..
About time, still, it’s not exactly earth shattering news. The government have said that any gurkha who retired before 1997 can APPLY for UK residency. Big deal. I usually avoid politics on the blog but what gets my goat is the softly softly approach we apply to anyone who enters the UK without a passport or permit yet treat those who have served the British Army in conficts throughout the world for decades with utter contempt.
Why the hell these soldiers should have to go cap in hand and literally beg for their families to live in the country they risked their lives for I do not know. The gurkha regiment are known as some of the bravest soldiers in the world and their exploits in the Second World War as well as conflicts in Burma and Malaya are legendary.
So is this a case of Brown and his cronies bowing to public pressure and making a desperate bid to reverse the groundswell of bad public opinion against them? British politics is in shambles, the public have lost all faith in their MP’s and it’s cases such as those of the gurkha’s were they must now tread very carefully.
I’d be interested to know from our American visitors if they have heard about the MP’s expenses row over here and what the US media are making of it all. Once again, over to you guys….
Miles,
Interesting post.
Either your pub visit ended early or you have a bit of Hemingway in you and the words flow after a couple of drinks. Two posts in one evening?!
I’m off for an early hike, but would love to weigh in on politics. I’ll check back in later.
Have a good day, all.
Melissa
May 22, 2009 @ 1:33 pm
I have read a bit about the “expense” outrage - kind of minor compared to the outright theft that is going on amongst the collection of morons on this side of the Atlantic. Politics has become the last refuge of the incompetent - and they never fail to underperform to even our lowest expectations.
As for the Gurkhas, that’s a raw deal. In the US military service guarantees citizenship.
May 24, 2009 @ 6:32 pm
Dave,
It’s rife wherever you look I suppose. I must say I’ve not seen such strong public opinion on a political matter for a very long time. It’s about time we became more engaged in our politics.
Miles
May 24, 2009 @ 9:50 pm
Yes, I have read about your MPs disaster, and was quick to realize that many of our leaders have clay feet. My complaint is that today’s politicians are not statesmen, but have become rabid guardians of their political parties’ positions rather than being the leaders they should be, advocating in the best interests of their constituencies. To paraphrase a common put-down for teachers, I say “Those who can do; those who can’t become politicians.”
May 25, 2009 @ 6:10 pm
Annie,
Great point, time for a new start or would the next batch be just the same?
It’s all about temptation and greed at the end of the day.
Miles
May 25, 2009 @ 10:47 pm