Hermon demands special RIR Fund
Whilst welcoming a financial settlement for the Home Battalions of the RIR which enables its courageous members to leave with dignity, North Down MP, Lady Sylvia Hermon, nevertheless voiced serious disappointment about the announcement made today (Thursday) in the House of Commons. Speaking afterwards she said:
“Although I still have reservations about the Government’s cutbacks in the current security climate, I’m pleased that the Government did not reduce the original figures but did, instead, increase them after intense lobbying by unionist politicians.
It’s of great importance that those soldiers who have served with the regiment are able to leave with dignity and the respect they deserve.
I do regret, however, that those who served through the most difficult periods in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s in the Ulster Defence Regiment and subsequently in the Royal Irish – the vast majority of whom are retired – won’t receive any additional financial recognition for their service during the worst of the Troubles.
There should have been the equivalent of the Police Fund in today’s MoD announcement, because no one can justify the distinction between UDR/RIR soldiers and police officers when they were the victims of the same terrorist attacks. I’ve called upon the Government to address this inconsistency urgently and I expect a positive response.”