Forces pay pledge

LIBERAL Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate Elwyn Watkins has called for pay rises for service men and women on the poverty line.

Mr Watkins, who is to contest the Oldham East and Saddleworth constituency, says the Government should award big pay rises to military personnel, many of whom are risking their lives on the Afghanistan frontline.

He is backing the Liberal Democrat policy to give the worst paid servicemen and women, who earn less than trainee police officers and firefighters, pay rises worth almost £6,000 a year.

He said: “Every day young men and women are putting their lives on the line, fighting in terrible conditions in Afghanistan.

“What is their reward from this Labour Government? Shockingly poor pay that leaves them on the poverty line and their families back at home hungry.

“The Liberal Democrats will put a stop to this straight away.

“We will raise the pay of the lowest paid troops by an extra £6,000 a year. The average basic pay across the ranks of private and lance corporal would rise to around £25,000. We need to stop short-changing our troops.”

The Liberal Democrat policy would cost between £300 and £400 million — 1 per cent of the Ministry of Defence’s total budget.

It would be paid for by reducing the number of civil servants within the MoD, where at the moment there is one desk job for every two servicemen.