Defence Secretary Ainsworth and senior civil servants at the MoD must be feeling very smug and self-satisfied today because the Court of Appeal has upheld their claim against the awards made by the compensation tribunal to two injured British soldiers.

When the tribunal increased the basic compensation awarded to Corporal Anthony Duncan and Royal Marine Matthew McWilliams because both men had suffered further health problems as a result of their injuries, the MoD took the case to the High Court to get the increases revoked.

The High Court upheld the awards amde to the soldeirs but the MoD was determined to claw back the compensation and doggedly pursued the case to the Court of Appeal.

Ministers and MPs continue to rip off the taxpayers by cynically manipulating their expenses (particularly those relating to 'second homes').

Civil servants at the MoD continue to get massive annual bonuses or receive hundreds of thousands of pounds in compensation for a strained thumb or 'work-related stress'.

Meanwhile two soldiers may have to repay compensation awarded to them for their injuries.

The Mail: Injured servicemen face having compensation slashed after MoD wins court battle

BBC: Smith apology for expenses claims

Two articles appeared in today's newspapers which, when read together, make for uncomfortable reading.

In the article 'Big Bang scientist admits plotting Al Qaeda atrocity', the Daily Mail reports that French police have uncovered a terror plot by an eminent Algerian nuclear physicist currently working on the CERN nuclear research euro-project. The scientist

is alledged to have been planning to use his expertise to set off a nuclear explosion - possibly in the UK. A British security source said: "It appears that Al Qaeda are now deliberately recruiting extremely intelligent people who have both the knowledge and the resources to potentially create a nuclear bomb or identify nuclear targets".

Under the headline 'Skint MoD will axe 900 nuke base cops', today's Sun reports that the MoD is considering a "suicide" mission: slashing the military police force which guards the UK's nuclear installations. A defence source is reported to have said: "These guys guard nuke depots and weapons silos round the clock as well as intelligence units, docks and training facilities - every sensitive military building in Britain. They also watch over barracks housing the loved ones of troops fighting on the front-line"

So there you have it: just as Al Qaeda is planning to use weapons of mass destruction, the MoD is planning to leave the doors to the UK's nuclear installations unlocked for them.

Labour obviously wants to go out with a bang!

The Mail: Big Bang scientist 'admits plotting Al Qaeda atrocity'
The Sun: Skint MoD will axe 900 nuke base cops

At the their party conference yesterday Liam Fox, shadow defence secretary, promised that a Tory government would look to cut the running costs of the MoD by as much as 25% to free up extra cash for spending on frontline troops.

It is astounding to read that the cost of running the MoD itself accounts for 20% of the total

defence budget - that's one hell of a lot of tea and biscuits! But with 85,000 civil servants sitting behind their desks in the MoD, you can understand where it all goes.

The MoD is renowned for waste and budget overspend, all at the expense of the guys fighting on the frontline. As Liam Fox said: "The procurement process has failed to deliver on time. The top 20 major procurement programmes have a cumulative delay of 483 months. The expected cost overruns in the next 10 years alone amount to £16bn … The simple truth is that Gordon Brown as chancellor was never willing to fully fund Tony Blair's wars".

If, as the Tories insist, their cuts would not hit defence projects or the numbers in the Armed Forces, then civilian jobs must be what is in their sights. You must admit: 85,000 civil servants doing the admin for the 99,000 in the Army does sound a tad disproportionate.

Coincidently yesterday was also the day that it was announced that General Dannatt would be joining a new Tory government as, at the least, its military advisor. Can we take this 25% cut as the first manifestation of The General's revenge on the bureaucrats who conspired against him when he was CGS?

BBC: Tories 'to cut MoD costs by 25%'

Eight Chinook MK3 helicopters have not been able to be used since they were bought back in 2001 because the MoD tried to save money by designing its own software for them.

In what has been described by the chairman of the Commons Public Accounts Committee as as “one of the most incompetent procurements of all time”, Boeing warned the MoD that the avionics system software would be too complex for them to write their own

code but of course the MoD thought it knew better. For eight years the Chinooks have been sitting in a hanger gathering dust while the MoD's computer people failed to come up with their own bespoke software. The MoD has now conceded that it can't in fact adapt the helicopters into the high-tech model they planned and have been forced to settle for the original, utility version. So the eight Chinooks which could have been in service in 2001 will now be in service in 2010 and their cost has increased from £259million to £500million.

The Army has been crying out for helicopters and lives have, at the least, been put at risk because there aren't enough of them in Afghanistan.

The Chinook fiasco is not "embarrassing", it's downright criminal.

The Times: Missing software kept Chinook Mk3 helicopters in Wiltshire hangar
The Times: Chinook turns out to be one of the MoD’s most embarrassing purchases

Having already started legal proceedings to clawback compensation paid to wounded soldiers, Defence minister Bob Ainsworth and his labour mates are now looking to further reduce the allowances paid to wounded troops by as much as £3,000 per year.

At the moment soldiers unable to work due to battlefield injuries receive an allowance of £57 per week and 12,000 veterans are currently in receipt of this additional benefit. In a bid to get back some of the £millions the MoD has squandered on its failed defence contracts, the government is planning to axe this injury benefit as from next April.

Coming at a time when British troops are suffering their highest rate of battle injuries in Afghanistan, this latest kick in the teeth from the government has been called "morally indefensible" by the chairman of the National Gulf War Veterans and Families Association.

An MoD spokesperson glibly said: "Anyone who is unhappy with the outcome of a claim has the right to appeal." And you know where that will get you; even if you win, the government will bring a lawsuit against you.

The Mail: Wounded soldiers up to £3,000 worse off a year after secret benefits axe

While Corporal Reynolds has his sights on a Taliban leader called Mula, back home civil servants have their sights on a mula of a different kind.

Civil servants in the MoD are not simply content with picking up massive bonuses for sitting behind desks in Kabul, they aim for much higher stakes. They aim to cash-in on the skills they have picked up at the MoD by going for lucrative jobs in the private sector - particularly, it seems, the armaments industry.

A recent investigation by the Daily Mail has found that:

• The MoD handed a £1.7billion contract for Lynx Wildcat helicopters to a company that later hired the department's top civil servant.
• The MoD's former chief operating officer of defence equipment and support - which put him in charge of £billions worth of procurement contracts - took up a consultant post at Selex Sensors and Airborne Systems.
• A former chief scientific adviser at the MoD joined Finmeccanica (supplier of the Lynx) as non-executive director.
• A former British representative in Iraq was made vice president and managing director of EDS Defence - which two months previously had won a £4billion contract for the MoD's new information infrastructure, called the ATLAS project.
• etc, etc.....
  

Considering that during these gentlemen's fiefdom major defence projects ran years over forecast and £millions over budget, it is surprising that commercial companies would even consider giving them jobs sweeping the floors.

Tory MP Douglas Carswell said the revelations raised 'disturbing questions' and has written to the House of Commons Defence Committee and the Public Accounts Committee, asking them to consider investigating the Future Lynx deal.

The Mail: Cashing in on the MoD gravy train: 130 civil servants defect to private sector in a year

A civil servant sent to shuffle paper behind a desk in a safe, air-conditioned office in Kabul picks up a bonus of £50,000 for a six month posting; a soldier risking his life fighting in the dust and dirt on the frontline gets a £2,000 warzone allowance for his six month tour.

An MoD spokesperson said: "Civil servants get allowances to recognise the challenges they face".

What! This is unbelievable. But then the double standards and hypocrisy of the government should not, I suppose, come as a surprise any more.

We've seen their attempts to claw back the meagre compensation paid to injured soldiers while handing over £450,000 to a civil servant with a strained thumb.

We've seen them spending £millions on office refurbishment at the MoD while military families were having to live in squalid conditions.

We've seen top former MoD civil servants taking up lucrative directorships in the armaments industry while the projects they were meant to manage when at the MoD are years behind schedule and £millions over budget - all at a time when the troops are deprived of the equipment they urgently need and lives are put at risk as a consequence.

The Sun: £2K for troops, £50K for clerks.

How can the MoD keep getting it so wrong?

I mean you couldn't make it up, could you?

A dog - man's best friend, beloved of middle England, a golden labrador even! - was adopted as a mascot by soldiers fighting in Iraq.

The loveable dog, called "Sandbag", had been living with British soldiers at their base in Um Qasa, near Basra, and was credited with bringing them good luck on patrols and with keeping away mauranding stray dogs.

One soldier said: 'He's very loyal to the troops - if you get mobbed by other dogs, he will literally fight every single one of them."

More than 6,000 people signed a petition on the Number 10 website calling for the dog to be given refuge in the UK.

And what did government say: "Leave it behind, let the Americans look after it".

You would have thought that someone in the MoD's PR department would have said: Hang on a minute, we could get ourselves some good publicity here - kind-hearted, caring, "soldier-centric". We could announce that: hey, we're good guys, we're going bring Sandbag home. But no. They didn't give it a thought.

There you go.

Anyway, a public appeal has now been launched to raise the cash to bring Sandbag the 'hero' dog to the UK and reunite him with his soldier friends.

The Mail: Sandbag saved! Animal charities unite to bring home soldiers' mascot left out in Iraq

In an unexpected move the MoD has decided to put its trust in the guys on the frontline and let them use online social networking websites to keep in touch with their families and friends back home. The MoD is actively encouraging soldiers on operations to describe what they are up to in Afghanistan - especially if they do so in a positive

way. The MoD has even agreed to support those who are prepared to run their own blogs.

Of course there will be guidelines but essentially the word is "use your common sense and don't give away operational secrets"

This enlightened approach is in marked contrast to what happens in the US military where tight controls remain in place.

The Guardian: UK troops encouraged to use Twitter and Facebook in the field
MoD: Forces encouraged to blog, tweet and engage online

Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth has rushed back from his holiday beach to announce a review of the compensation paid to members of the Armed Forces who are injured in the line of duty.

This evening he said: "I cannot allow the situation to continue that leaves the public in any doubt over my or the Government's commitment to our servicemen and women. Therefore, in order to deal with this complex issue in the most sensitive, effective and fair way possible, I have ordered the planned review of the compensation scheme to be brought forward from next year. The review will begin immediately in consultation with stakeholders including Service charities and families."

Ainsworth and Brown are spitting in the wind if they think the public believes in their "commitment".

What amazes me is how out of touch the government is, how cut off they are from the people. Not only that but the MoD must also have the worst PR company going.

The bombshell that exploded when the MoD took its own to court in order to claw back injury compensation payments from two soldiers was met with silence from ministers and fumbled, defensive damage limitation from the MoD.

Behind the scenes ministers obviously panicked as the government has been bounced into bringing forward the scheduled review of the compensation scheme.

Ainsworth's assurances that the review will have a positive outcome is welcomed ."I can offer an assurance, however, that new arrangements will benefit those with claims under the existing scheme, including those mentioned in the current court case."

MoD: MOD brings forward review of Armed Forces Compensation Scheme
BBC: MoD payout review to start early
MoD: Armed Forces Compensation Scheme

The day after (the day after!) Brown was claiming victory in Operation Panther's Claw, the news has broken that the MoD is seeking to claw back some of the compensation awarded to two injured soldiers - one wounded on the battlefield in Iraq.
The money the government is trying to get back is that paid out (approx £25k each) for the suffering caused to the soldiers from health problems which arose as a result of their original injuries. Of course this additional suffering wouldn't have happened if the guys hadn't been injured in the first place.

This is typical of the labour government's hypocrisy and duplicity when it comes to its treatment of Britain's Armed Forces. Just when you thought they couldn't stoop any lower, they slither deeper into the gutter.

After years of refusing to review the insulting amounts awarded under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme, Brown and Co were eventually forced in 2007 to increase the compensation paid to soldiers whose lives - and the lives of their families - had been shattered fighting for their country. It was the long and hard-fought campaign, spearheaded by the mother of Ben Parkinson, against an intransigent government that eventually achieved recognition for the debt the country owes these guys.

A posting on today's MoD Blog seeks to offset the criticisms raised in an article in last Sunday's Telegraph, 'Injured soldiers deserve better', by saying that "you mustn't forget the Income Payment for Life" that's paid out in addition to the lump sum. How generous they are! You'd almost think it's their money. Too right the guys should receive a pension for life; they've got to live with their injuries for life.

The labour government is quite happy to pay out £millions in compensation and redundancy payments to their friends in the nationalised banks and are quite happy to sit back and say "sorry, we can't do anything about the £millions being paid in bonuses to city bankers". But when it comes to paying out a few quid to wounded soldiers: yeah, we'll stop that.

What the labour government, through the MoD, is doing today beggars belief. The bloodiest campaign yet fought is just drawing to its close and Brown has been saying: "The efforts of our troops in Helmand have been nothing short of heroic.There has been a tragic human cost. But this has not been in vain."

"A tragic human cost" - but Brown can't stomach the real cost.

Of course the two injuried soldiers who are about to be dragged through the courts are simply test cases; are being used in a much bigger game. Hundreds of soldiers have been wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan (no surprise that the government doesn't release the figures) and the government doesn't want to have to be handing over the bankers' cash to injured squaddies.

NB. One of the two soldiers is back fighting in Afghanistan as ministers sitting in Whitehall scheme to take back his compensation.

BBC: MoD seeks to cut soldiers' payout
The Mail: The soldier whose compensation Government is fighting to reduce... back on the front line in Afghanistan