Marines merger fear in military shake-up
FEARS are growing over the future of the Royal Marines as the Ministry of Defence considers merging the historic corps with the Parachute Regiment.
The concerns come after the MoD confirmed to The News that proposals for a new 'special forces' brigade were to be included in talks over military cuts.
Portsmouth South MP Mike Hancock, a member of the coalition government and of the Parliamentary Defence Select Committee, told The News he feared for the Marines' future, because of discussions about a merger with the Army's Parachute Regiment, known as the Paras.
He said: 'The fallout of the discussions will be pretty dramatic in terms of personnel, and the navy will face manpower cuts in service and civilian jobs.
'One thing under discussion is the pooling of the Royal Marines and Parachute Regiment, to create a Combined Operations Special Forces Unit.
'I don't believe this should happen, because the forces are separate fighting units, doing different jobs, and the Marines have their own HQ at Whale Island, which should remain because they are the navy's specialist force. I think it could be a disastrous measure, but it's being discussed and we will all have to wait and see what the upshot is.'
The discussions are taking place as part of the ongoing Strategic Defence Review, which is expected to result in Ministry of Defence's budget being cut by up to a quarter.
The idea the Marines and Paras could be merged was speculated upon earlier this year - but this is the first time the suggestion has been given any credibility.
Mr Hancock added: I hope it will be refused, as I think it will be bad for the forces, and bad for Portsmouth, as the Paras are based in Colchester and there's no information whether Portsmouth would lose the Marines, or their replacement, for good.'
A spokesman for the MoD admitted: 'It's being considered. Everything is being considered. We won't speculate at this time and we will have to wait to see what the review will come up with and we won't speculate on possible outcomes, but the future configuration of our armed forces will be based on the findings of the Review.'
Portsmouth North's Conservative MP Penny Mordaunt said: 'The idea of merging admin functions for the armed forces makes sense, as it's a way money could be saved without too much impact on front-line servicepeople, but the Marines are too important to disappear. They and the Paras are different specialist forces, and I hope the review's conclusions will reflect that by making sure both continue as they are.'
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Friday 25 May 2012
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