Looking after our heroes
I spent yesterday morning in Rossendale and Darwen with the local MP Jake Berry and his energetic and enthusiastic team, surveying the views and concerns of local residents.
One issue which was raised with us by several residents was transport, with one lady being very concerned about bus services to her area (or the lack of them) and another lady raising the issue of local rail services.
Jake Berry MP is campaigning for a commuter rail link to Rossendale, and he has an online petition for this, also supported by the Rossendale Free Press, which you can sign here.
Another issue which came up several times - and which I have also found to be an issue in Cumbria - is how our country treats the heroic men and women of our armed services.
For centuries we have had a poor record in how we treat the people who risk their lives for Britain in our armed services. That's the reason for my choosing today's "Quote of the day" which demonstrates that this goes back to Tudor and Stuart times - the author of the quote was born when Elizabeth the First was still on the throne.
We need to look after our people better while they are serving - no more putting them into the line of fire with inadequate armour and equipment - and we need to look after them better when they leave the services so that we don't have so high a proportion of our veterans in positions where they are homeless, need the services of our mental health facilities, or get into trouble with the law.
Hence the "Armed Forces Covenant" first proposed informally by the MoD in 2000 as the "Military Covenant" and enshrined law by the present government in 2011.
This is an important step in the right direction but on the evidence of the feedback I've been getting we need to make major efforts as a society to make sure it is properly implemented and that we look after our service people and our veterans. The next week, as we come up to Remembrance Sunday a week today and Armistice Day the following Monday, it is important that we remember this and think about what more we can do.
One issue which was raised with us by several residents was transport, with one lady being very concerned about bus services to her area (or the lack of them) and another lady raising the issue of local rail services.
Jake Berry MP is campaigning for a commuter rail link to Rossendale, and he has an online petition for this, also supported by the Rossendale Free Press, which you can sign here.
Another issue which came up several times - and which I have also found to be an issue in Cumbria - is how our country treats the heroic men and women of our armed services.
For centuries we have had a poor record in how we treat the people who risk their lives for Britain in our armed services. That's the reason for my choosing today's "Quote of the day" which demonstrates that this goes back to Tudor and Stuart times - the author of the quote was born when Elizabeth the First was still on the throne.
We need to look after our people better while they are serving - no more putting them into the line of fire with inadequate armour and equipment - and we need to look after them better when they leave the services so that we don't have so high a proportion of our veterans in positions where they are homeless, need the services of our mental health facilities, or get into trouble with the law.
Hence the "Armed Forces Covenant" first proposed informally by the MoD in 2000 as the "Military Covenant" and enshrined law by the present government in 2011.
This is an important step in the right direction but on the evidence of the feedback I've been getting we need to make major efforts as a society to make sure it is properly implemented and that we look after our service people and our veterans. The next week, as we come up to Remembrance Sunday a week today and Armistice Day the following Monday, it is important that we remember this and think about what more we can do.
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