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The Veterans Minister.
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Post The Veterans Minister. 
Recently I had a meeting with Mike Russell MSP (the Minister for Education in the Scottish Parliament) and he sent a letter supporting the right of veterans to wear the PJM to Michael Moore MP, Scottish Secretary, with a copy to William Hague MP, Foreign Secretary of State, and Dr Liam Fox MP the Secretary of State for Defence.

This letter apparently landed on the desk of our new coalition government Veterans Minister, Andrew Robathan MP who sent the following letter to Mike Russell MSP.

I will comment on this later but it appears that we have now gone the full circle and nothing has changed.







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Nil Desperandum, Andy. There are still enough of us manning the front line to keep our fight going, and maybe eventually the still very new coalition will find the courage to actually take on the quangos and the outdated mandarins of Whitehall. If not sooner than 'never,' as with the old lot, they won't last long. The whole nation is watching and waiting for such changes to something completely new, and if they don't demonstrate that they have the gonads to deliver they will soon enough be dead in the water. What this coalition should realise is that an honourable solution to 'our plight' would become front page news...because we would make it such in the name of those of us who are left of our original 35,000 comrades. I point out that I am not talking politics here....just common humanity and respect for old veterans who deserve better treatment than they have so far had to endure.


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Mike Barton
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Post Veterans Minister 
The above letter from the new Veterans Minister shows that our campaign for justice, truth and democratic rights for veterans has landed on deaf ears and that the new Veterans Minister, Andrew Robathan MP, has decided to treat us with the same specious explanations identical to those given by his predecessors in the previous government.

Before being elected to parliament Dr Liam Fox said in an email –

 Thank you for your letter about the Pingat Jasa Malaysia Medal (PJM).

 We recognise that the rules governing the awarding of foreign medals and decorations have been implemented inconsistently and understand the frustration of those veterans eligible for the PJM. The contribution made by those who served in Malaysia should not be forgotten. It is also important however that the rules governing these issues are not disregarded.

 Conservatives have stated that a future Conservative Government would review the rules governing the awarding of foreign medals. The current regulations have been devalued such that decisions are difficult to take on an objective basis. During this review all medal issues can be considered and rules will be drafted to ensure that all medal decisions are thought through and applied consistently.

Unfortunately his Veterans Minister apparently does not concur and he believes the PJM contravenes the longstanding double medal rules (he uses the plural to suggest there are more than one double medal rule) whereby only one medal may be awarded for any given period of service. We all know this to be absolute bollocks.

Also, on a personal note, I find it most unsuitable for the Veterans Minister to make a personal remark that ‘As Mr Nicoll is fully aware, matters relating to the wear of foreign awards by British citizens are administered by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)’. Perhaps he should read his correspondence more thoroughly as he will find that the original letter was also copied to The Foreign Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Are we to receive a fair and just review of all the lies and myths perpetrated to justify the non-wear of the honourable PJM. Every day this is looking more doubtful!

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MB wrote:
Nil Desperandum, Andy. There are still enough of us manning the front line to keep our fight going, and maybe eventually the still very new coalition will find the courage to actually take on the quangos and the outdated mandarins of Whitehall. If not sooner than 'never,' as with the old lot, they won't last long. The whole nation is watching and waiting for such changes to something completely new, and if they don't demonstrate that they have the gonads to deliver they will soon enough be dead in the water. What this coalition should realise is that an honourable solution to 'our plight' would become front page news...because we would make it such in the name of those of us who are left of our original 35,000 comrades. I point out that I am not talking politics here....just common humanity and respect for old veterans who deserve better treatment than they have so far had to endure.


Yes Mike, you are quite correct and it is not being political just to tell the truth. Perhaps those in power now will remember that Scotland is a 'Tory Free Zone' and may like to know why. If so they should just phone me or Mike and we will tell them.

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I would love such a phone call, Andy, and at last be able to say my say on behalf of 'all of us' who not only gave up two years of our life as National Service personnel but also served in perfect harmony with our Regular service comrades under the banner of Hearts and Minds. Would that those who purport to now order our lives were so dedicated and able to serve the people of their own country with such total selflessnes as we served the emergent Malaysia in its most vulnerable days. I talk of your and my days, Andy, but we both know that the majority of our comrades continued the fight, under the same terms, in Borneo and suffered maybe greater losses.

I would just like to know what it is we all did to be treated so badly while our close comrades from Australia, New Zealand and Fiji who faught alongside us have the right to wear the PJM while we in the Uk don't. Oh yes, a wee talk with the chief mandarin would see me a happy man.


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Mike Barton
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Mike,

In answer to your question, what did we do wrong?

Simple - we served our nation and another nation in what was their darkest days. We did it with courage and aplomb, making great friends with the people of an emergent nation, who showed their everlasting gratitude.

Those people still have our lasting friendship, which is exemplified every time a veteran goes to Malaya, and the high regard with which they are held.

Two years ago, I went to the Addenbrooke Hospital, in Cambridge for treatment for a back injury. Two of the female doctors were Malayan, and when they saw my PJM laple badge, they shook my hand and said thank you. I had to confess to them that I didn't actually do any fighting, with the exception of vicious hand to hand fighting with the pongos from Nee Soon garrison.

That's what we did wrong

Yours Aye

Arthur R-S

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MB wrote:


I would just like to know what it is we all did to be treated so badly while our close comrades from Australia, New Zealand and Fiji who faught alongside us have the right to wear the PJM while we in the Uk don't. Oh yes, a wee talk with the chief mandarin would see me a happy man.


We were born in the UK.

It is cause we is British man!

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I suspect that you are right McDangle.

Yours Aye

Arthur R-S

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Post My first letter from my NEW MP >>>> 
In reply to a letter sent to my MP Graham Evans MP (con) I recieved this reply this morning.

I look forward to the reply from the Veterans minister.




Phredd


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phredd wrote:
In reply to a letter sent to my MP Graham Evans MP (con) I recieved this reply this morning.

I look forward to the reply from the Veterans minister.

Phredd


Phredd,

It will be most interesting to see what the Veterans Minister says.

I was under the impression that he was employed (at great public expense no doubt) to listen with compassion and interest to veteran matters. We can only hope that he finds a way round the incorrect and insulting advice given by his civil servants and he realises, like many before him that the PJM non-wear rule breaches our constitutional and democratic rights and as an elected member of parliament he supports our just campaign to be given the right to wear this honourable medal.

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phredd.

I too am waiting for an update from my Westminster MP Danny Alexander who wrote to the new Foreign Office Minister on our behalf. It will be interesting to see the replies from two different ministers who are supposedly able to make a difference in respect of our case for the right to wear the PJM. I guess we must hold our horses, and our breath, until we know if the new coalition can really break the mold...."as promised."

Mike.


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