Eighty-five years ago, on 14 May 1940, Anthony Eden, newly-appointed secretary of war in Winston Churchill’s government, went on the radio to appeal for volunteers to join a newly formed defence militia to guard against a German invasion. Originally called the Local Defence Volunteers, this force later became the Home Guard, immortalised on our TV screens as ‘Dad’s Army’.
As things turned out, the Battle of Britain ensured that Operation Sealion, the Nazi invasion plan, never took place, but the Home Guard remained in being, and while never tested in combat, they were a morale-boosting reminder that Britons old and young were ready to do their bit in defending the country. According to the Sunday Times, the idea of reviving the wartime Home Guard forms a central part of the forthcoming Strategic Defence Review of Britain’s military response to a menacing new world order.
Is the government admitting that we just don’t have enough trained soldiers?
The job of guarding our nuclear installations rests with the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, a specially trained and armed branch of the police who have for more than 50 years carried out their job with exemplary efficiency. It is far from clear why they should need the assistance of a scratch force of untrained and inexperienced civilian weekend volunteers to carry out their work.
In the event of a terrorist assault or cyber attack, either the professional army is on hand or the expert advice of IT experts can be called upon – or is the government admitting that we just don’t have enough trained soldiers to do the job?
The still unexplained breakdown in an electricity generating sub-station that caused the closure of Heathrow Airport earlier this year illustrates just how vulnerable our complex network of power and energy supply is, but it is hard to see how an untrained force of well-meaning amateurs can make that shaky situation more stable.
Starmer’s unconvincing portrayal of himself in a military flak jacket may raise the odd mocking snigger, but for a genuine belly laugh we should watch a re-run of Dad’s Army, rather than endure this weak imitation of the real thing.
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