The Sandbag Times Issue No: 42

Issue 42_riskuk_jan16 02/04/2018 15:12 Page 5
NEWS
THE VETERANS’ MAGAZINE
SBT NEWS April Edition info@sandbagtimes.com
Gen. Nick Carter Named As New Military Chief
Britain's new military chief has
been announced as outspoken
General Sir Nick Carter who
made a strong case for more
money for the Army. Gen Carter,
the head of the Army since 2014,
will succeed Air Chief Marshal
Sir Stuart Peach when he stands
down in June to become chairman
Defence chiefs have been
forced to pay out £5.5 million
compensation to 34 troops
suffering acute post­traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD). The
squaddies received an average
of £161,764 each after top
brass conceded that mental
illness brought about by their
service will affect their
personal and professional lives
for years to come. According
of Nato's military committee. His
appointment is seen as a boost for
the Ministry of Defence after he
was given the green­light in
January to issue a stark warning
about the Russian threat as he bid
for more cash. In a speech at the
Royal United Services Institute
(Rusi), he laid bare the scale of
MOD Pays Compensation for ‘Shell Shock’
Investigation of Missing RAF Airman Called Off
The search for the missing
RAF gunner Corrie
McKeague will be handed
over to a cold­case squad,
police have confirmed. No
trace of McKeague, then
23, has been found since
he was last seen in Bury
St Edmunds, Suffolk, after
a night out with friends on
24 September 2016. It is
thought he may have
climbed into a waste bin
to a Freedom of Information
(FoI) request, a further 53 cases
r e m a i n
pending
against the
Ministry of
Defence,
meaning
taxpayers face
footing the bill
for further
huge pay­outs
that was then taken away
by a lorry. Det Supt Katie
Elliott said: “It is extremely
disappointing that we have
not been able to find
Corrie. I can only imagine
the strain Corrie’s family
have been under over the
past 18 months and I
thank them for their
patience and
understanding. “Whilst the
investigation has drawn to
the threat and said Vladimir Putin
could start hostilities against the
West ‘sooner that we expect’. He
also warned of Russia’s ‘eyewatering’
military capabilities and
said Britain’s ability to response
to the threat would be ‘eroded if
we don’t match up to them now’.
Army sources feared the speech
could have impacted on his
chances of becoming the new
Chief of the Defence Staff. But
Downing Street today announced
Gen Carter – who served in
Germany during the Cold War ­ as
the new CDS after approval from
the Queen. The Prime Minister
had interviewed – Gen Carter,
General Sir James Everard who is
currently the UK's most senior
officer at NATO, and General Sir
Gordon Messenger.
as a result of PTSD cases
which, according to some
health experts, could have been
prevented.
a natural conclusion, we
will continue to work with
the family to provide
answers to their questions
and help them understand
what may have happened.
“Since Corrie disappeared,
police have been exploring
all proportionate and
relevant lines of inquiry,”
she added
Calls For Walter Tull To
Be Given Military Cross
A cross­party group of MPs is
calling for the first black British
Army officer to be awarded a
posthumous Military Cross. The
campaign to honour Walter Tull
has been backed by 127 MPs who
have written to Prime Minister
Theresa May seeking the recognition.
The move comes at the hundredth
anniversary of the death of
Mr Tull, who was also one of the
first black professional footballers.
Mr Tull was commissioned
as an officer in 1917
despite military regulations forbidding
"any negro or person of
colour" from serving in such a
role. But parliamentarians say
racism meant he was never awarded
the Military Cross he was recommended
for. The drive to
recognise Mr Tull's bravery is
being led by Labour MP David
Lammy, and has the backing of
Jeremy Corbyn, and prominent
Tories and DUP members.
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