Air Force, Navy to pay for Afghanistan war

LONDON - The Royal Air Force and Royal Navy will bear the brunt of severe cuts in defence spending to pay for the rapidly-rising cost of the war in Afghanistan.

Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth also announced that 7500 civil servants will lose their jobs and that the size of the armed forces would be slimmed down.

He set out plans for an extra £900 million ($2 billion) to support the fight against the Taleban in Helmand and disclosed that the bill for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan now exceeds £14 billion.

The extent of the cuts - which will see one RAF base closed and a second mothballed - was spelled out in a House of Commons statement. It brought accusations that Britain's defences were being undermined because of "catastrophic economic mismanagement" by the Ministry of Defence.

The cost of fighting foreign wars has traditionally been met from central government coffers to ensure that defence budgets were not affected by emergency deployments of troops.

But as Britain's involvement in Afghanistan enters its ninth year, Ainsworth said economies would have to be found in his ministerial budget.

Up to three squadrons of Harrier and Tornado jet fighters will be axed, resulting in the closure of the RAF base in Cottesmore, Leicestershire.

A fleet of Nimrod reconnaissance aircraft will be taken out of service within months - 12 months earlier than expected - and not replaced for several years.

The move leaves a question mark over the future of the RAF base at Kinloss, Moray, and the 1800 service personnel who work there.

The Royal Navy will have a minesweeper and survey ship scrapped early, as well as losing Lynx and Merlin Mk 1 helicopters.

The MOD will lose about 7500 of its 100,000-strong civilian workforce.

Ainsworth also warned that the number of servicemen and women would be cut by "slowing recruitment" and not rehiring some who are on short-term contracts: "The emphasis will be on prioritising our manpower for our operations in Afghanistan."

He said some Army training would be cut and spending reduced on the maintenance of defence sites.

Ainsworth said the moves would ensure that "those who put themselves in harm's way on our behalf remain properly supported and resourced".

The cash saved will help fund the new £900 million increase in spending on military equipment in Afghanistan, which will be spread over three years.

It will pay for 22 Chinook helicopters, 10 of which will arrive in 2012-13, and another C-17 heavy-lift aircraft. More troops will be issued with "state-of-the-art body armour" and night-vision goggles.

Ainsworth also promised that communications within Helmand would be enhanced with more tactical radio and patrol systems, while the number of Reaper drones used to collect intelligence about the Taleban would be increased.

Liam Fox, the shadow defence secretary, said: "Making cuts to our wider defence capability when we're fighting a war only strengthens the perception that we have a Government that does not give a high priority to the armed forces."

He said the Nimrod announcement would leave submarines unprotected and hamper reconnaissance and long-range search and rescue capabilities.

The union Prospect, which represents 9000 MOD specialist staff, said the cuts threatened the capability of the armed forces.

Steve Jary, its national secretary, said: "Our members report that the department is close to meltdown."

CASUALTIES OF WAR

Where cuts will fall:

* RAF Cottesmore, Leicestershire, with 3500 staff, to shut.
* RAF Kinloss, Moray, with 1800 staff, to be scaled back.
* Some 7500 civilian staff to lose jobs, cuts in numbers of service personnel.
* Size of RAF Harrier and Tornado fast-jet forces to be reduced by two or three squadrons.
* Nimrod surveillance aircraft coming out of service a year early.
* Minesweeper, survey ship and naval helicopters axed.Independent

- INDEPENDENT