PCS on non announcement!

DTR - Non Announcement

Published by Cheryl under Cosford, MoD

Yesterday the Shropshire Star had the following to say about the defence debate in the house of commons:

Thursday the 9th of October was another “non announcement” on the future of Package 1 DTR from the Minister for the Armed Forces Bob Ainsworth. Local MP’s Mark Pritchard both asked questions during the debate, an ad hoc version is below. Of interest was the fact that none of the Welsh MP’s made any comment.”PCS Branch Official H O’Harney at Cosford said “The news that further delays in the programme did not come as a shock to the staff at Cosford, they have been waiting for years to have clarification on their futures .The MoD seem hell bent on moving to Wales at all cost and the sooner the National Audit Office or Publics Account Committee review this programme the better since PCS are still skeptical that DTR is affordable. A £12 billion PFI carrying on in this current finacial crisis seems ridiculous given the risks and affordability issues. Our members at Cosford have made it clear that they have no intention to move Wales and the risk to the training of the Armed Forces is still real. It would appear that the MoD want to privatise at all cost despite the huge risks”

The response to a question, by the astute MP Mark Pritchard, Mr. Ainsworth: I am sure that the hon. Gentleman has a national interest too, but he has a particular interest in this matter and, obviously, he pursues it. I am not saying that the costs have not changed. I am saying that we still have an affordable package that is far cheaper than the alternatives, and that has been worked on over the summer. We will be able to go ahead with defence package 1 and get value for money out of those proposals…..

This is another first for the DTR programme in suggesting that the “fallback posistion” is more expensive than the proposed move to St Athan !! No wonder the Department needs to give Metrix another six months grace to rearrange costings to fit. It is also of note that in the preamble issued to staff that the MoD have stated that the sale of additional sites plays no part in enabling the move to ahead. Strangely in their own Risk Assessment which was featured in the Private Eye magazine, this was one the MoD’s identified risks. The fact that the DTR IPT can try to spin another 6 month delay is a positive message to all the staff is ludicrous !! PCS will continue to campaign against this looming financial disaster.

St Athan Anti-metrix protest

for more info see http://www.antimetrix.org/2008/04/big-brother-hassles-anti-metrix-st.html

Jill Evans MEP speaks at the protest rally

Teachers condemn MOD recruitment drive

Mirror.co.uk

Teachers condemn MoD recruitment drives Times Online, UK - 4 hours ago The motion defended the rights of teachers “not to take part in activities promoting military recruitment, or which they feel present a partisan view of war ... Teachers attack army over "school recruitment" Reuters UK Teachers to oppose MoD 'propaganda' The Press Association Pupils 'lured' into armed forces BBC News Guardian all 239 news articles » Teachers attack army over "school recruitment" 25 MAR 2008 12:58 GMT LONDON (Reuters) - Teachers accused the Ministry of Defence on Tuesday of "exploiting" schools to find new recruits after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan made it harder to sign up volunteers. Full Article

Army recruitment in schools row
Guardian, UK - The union backed a motion committing the NUT to "support teachers and schools in opposing Ministry of Defence recruitment activities that are based upon ...

See more info on
In the Vale of Glamorgan John Smith boasts of opportuniuty for children to have benefits of St Athan Military academy on the agenda! waht are they then.. Working for arms dealers - Cluster bomb makers - training with mercenaries?

http://www.no2militaryacademy.com/2008/03/ilegal-propaganda-in-schools.html

drugs to Desensitise male soldiers to the sounds of women being raped

Frightening story but is this true also for the UK military and for mercenaries or 'military contractors' as the powers to be like to call them now? Stories of the MOD giving troops amphetamine dexedrine, or allowing soldiers to take a drug called kava-kava, not to mention problems of illegal drug use are putting soldiers health at risk not to mention their families and the effect on their behaviour on those around them.

Warriors out of their minds: Drugs of choice for super soldiers
By Peacedream
US military training also includes a component to desensitize male soldiers to the sounds of women being raped, so the enemy cannot use the cries of their fellow soldiers to leverage information. I think it not unreasonable to connect ...
Circle of 13 - http://circleof13.blogspot.com/

U.S. military training also includes a component to desensitize male soldiers to the sounds of women being raped, so the enemy cannot use the cries of their fellow soldiers to leverage information. I think it not unreasonable to connect such desensitization techniques to the rates of domestic violence in the military, which are, according to the DoD, five times those in the civilian population. Is anyone really surprised that men who have been specifically trained to ignore the pain and fear of women have a difficult time coming home to their wives and families? And clearly they do. There were 2,374 reported cases of sexual assault in the military in 2005, a 40 percent increase over 2004. But that figure represents only reported cases, and, as Air Force Brig. Gen. K.C. McClain, commander of DoD's Joint Task Force for Sexual Assault Prevention and Response pointed out, "Studies indicate that only 5 percent of sexual assaults are reported."

What they have come up with has already been dubbed "the mourning after pill." Propranalol, if taken immediately following a traumatic event, can subdue a victim's stress response and so soften his or her perception of the memory. That does not mean the memory has been erased, but proponents claim that the drug can render it emotionally toothless.

If your daughter were raped, the argument goes, wouldn't you want to spare her a traumatic memory that might well ruin her life? As the mother of a 23-year old daughter, I can certainly understand the appeal of that argument. And a drug that could prevent the terrible effects of traumatic injuries in soldiers? If I were the parent of a soldier suffering from such a life-altering injury, I can imagine being similarly persuaded.

Not surprisingly, the Army is already on board. Propranolol is a well-tolerated medication that has been used for years for other purposes.
And it is inexpensive.

UK troops receiving 'trigger happy' drug

BRITISH troops are being prescribed with a controversial drug which has been blamed for making US pilots "trigger-happy" and causing friendly fire deaths.

The Ministry of Defence has admitted that it prescribes the amphetamine dexedrine, which is capable of keeping users awake for as long as 60 hours.

While the MoD has refused to say what it uses the Class B drug for, leading narcotics experts say that the main purpose is to keep soldiers awake during special operations. However, they have warned that the substance can be highly addictive.

In addition, the MoD has admitted that it permits soldiers to take a drug called kava-kava, from the South Pacific, which is known to be linked to severe liver damage.

Documents obtained under Freedom of Information provisions show that although the amount the MoD spends on dexedrine is just GBP32per year, this is estimated to be enough for several hundred 5mg doses. A typical course will see a user given the pills for about two or three days.

Outwith the armed forces, the amphetamine is used to treat narcolepsy, a condition where sufferers cannot stop falling asleep at random times.

In addition to dexedrine, the MoD dispenses a small number of tablets of ephedrine, which has a similar, though less potent, effect.

The ministry also spends about GBP3,000 a year on melatonin, a substance which aids sleep, in order to get the body clocks of troops into synch after flying long distances.

Amphetamines have been controversially used by the US Air Force to keep pilots awake on long missions, although the UK has always denied giving the 'go pills' to its pilots.

In 2002, the 'Tarnak Farm incident' saw US fighter-bombers attack a group of Canadian soldiers, killing four and wounding another eight near Kandahar in Afghanistan.

During official hearings into the incident, the US pilots testified that they had been ordered to take amphetamines to keep awake. The pilots blamed the pills for their actions.

One leading defence insider said: "There are not many uses for these drugs in the military apart from keeping soldiers awake for long periods. If you need them for narcolepsy then there is not much point in you being in the army.

"Is it operationally justified? Yes - if you are on deep patrol for days at a time then you need to be awake, otherwise you risk getting killed."

Dr Paul Skett, a drugs expert at Glasgow University's Institute of Biological and Life Sciences, said: "It is a matter of concern because these substances are very addictive indeed. They can also make the user aggressive."

The documents also reveal that the MoD has decided to permit the use of kava-kava, which is popular in Fiji and produces a euphoric high, provided local commanders don't believe its use compromises operational effectiveness.

It is usually taken as a drink after being ground to a fine powder and mixed with water.

An MoD policy paper on the substance said: "There is some medical evidence that kava-kava could be detrimental to health, in particular that it can cause severe liver damage."

More Soldiers Lost To Drugs Than War

THE British Army loses almost a "battalion a year" due to illegal drug use, research published today said.The findings also showed a four-fold growth in soldiers testing positive for the class A drug cocaine. Research into compulsory drugs testing (CDT) of UK service personnel identified a rise in positive tests for illegal substances in the British Army from 517 individual cases in 2003, to 795 in 2005 and 769 in 2006.

The findings, published by the Journal of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) said the cost is nearly the equivalent of losing one battalion a year and higher than fatalities and serious casualties in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

Half St Athan package ditched

Plans for £15bn St Athan academy are hit
ic Wales, United Kingdom - 4 hours ago
PART of a huge £15bn defence training academy ear-marked for St. Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan is being ditched The two-part project would have seen all UK ...

Base loses some defence training BBC News, UK - 5 hours ago Plans to relocate some defence training to St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan have been dropped, the UK Government has announced. Ministers say the private ...

Bush Ally kicked into touch

Bush Ally Defeated in Australia 24 Nov 2007 Australia’s prime minister, John Howard, one of President [sic] Bush’s staunchest allies in Asia, suffered a comprehensive defeat at the hands of the electorate on Saturday, as his Liberal Party-led coalition lost its majority in Parliament.

Shame that Labour couldn't see sense here or Plaid and give the voters a chance to vote against offence and vote for defence without american coporations such as Raytheon and military training without inviting into our culture agressive us military agression.

Cosy Poison Embrace of Qinetiq by Welsh political leaders

Qinetiq slammed over sell off bonaza

But Despite this greed of the highest order, Welsh politicians act as if they could not care less. In January 2007, the QinetiQ-led Metrix Consortium won what is to be the largest investment in Welsh history – a £16 billion contract to build a private military training academy at St Athan, in the Vale of Glamorgan. The project would thrust Wales to the forefront of the global arms trade, since the business model at the heart of the St Athan Academy is to maximise profits by providing training not just to the British Armed Forces, but to militaries from all over the worldPrivatisation of the military, many fear, as is the case in other sectors, can undermine public accountability and erode ideas of public service and the public good, while achieving little if anything in the way of cost savings.

“The only winners in the privatisation of defence training,” says Mark Serwotka, General Secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union, “are the shareholders of the Metrix Consortium.”

Jill Evans, Plaid MEP, has recently raised concerns about the St Athan Defence Training Academy, particularly because of the Consortium members behind the project, which include other arms companies like Raytheon.

This cosy embrace of QinetiQ by Welsh political leaders over the past few years is puzzling, to say the least, given the country’s supposed commitment to principles of social justice and fairness, good governance, sustainable development and responsible international citizenship.

We are calling for a public debate about the companies involved in the Metrix consortium and we seek assurances that they are not involved in corruption or the trade of unethical weapons like cluster bombs and depleted uranium.

QinetiQ also helps Wales manage and market its new UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) centre at Parc Aberporth – a facility the government has said is a key part of its plans for the regeneration of Cardigan and West Wales. Welsh Assembly Members and Ministers, in welcoming QinetiQ to Parc Aberporth, have spoken glowingly of its “vast expertise” and “international reputation.

PCS View
Recently the MoD won awards at a PFI ceremony for privatising more functions than any other Civil Service department. This is a national scandal. Companies like QinetiQ were flogged off cheap, and now intend to make vast profits from delivering military training. QinetiQ will squeeze every penny out of the MoD that it can, while delivering training where quality is sacrificed to making profits for its shareholders.

This does not benefit the people of South Wales or our service personnel. It benefits QinetiQ, and that's all they're interested in. With recent reports of the breakdown of the military covenant, PCS asks is privatising defence training going to make things better? Our answer is an uneqivocal 'No!'

Watchdog raps mod over Qinetiq sell-off bonanza Register, UK - By Lewis Page → More by this author Analysis UK gov watchdog the National Audit Office (NAO) has released a damning report into the privatisation of the ..
..............In effect, then, the MoD still pays to fix up its old test ranges. It does so by borrowing the money from the private sector and then repaying over decades. At the same time it loses ownership of the assets it is paying to fix up............
This is a bit like being an Irish tenant of a rack-renting English landlord before the Republic became independent, paying for any necessary improvements of property you rent at extortionate terms......


Treasury mugged itself BBC News,
A battalion of former military bigwigs last night accused Gordon Brown of being tight-fisted on Britain’s defence. Which adds resonance to today’s judgement ...

Jobs Con on St Athan by Bryant, Morgan.....

Whatever happened to mature debate? Jill Evans MEP

Jill Evans is the only Welsh politican to speak out against the mega military academy proposals! Yet plaid policy is absolutely against privatisation so they speak out against post offices closing, traffic wardens been privatised but military training.....why not??

This contract will be the largest PFI/PPP project ever undertaken by the Ministry of Defence and will be the largest partnering arrangement ever undertaken in the UK. A Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for DTR in simplistic terms means that the winning consortia will effectively own all of the real estate and services for training for the next 25 years. For this they will be paid an annual sum and must, by law, make a profit for their shareholders. The contract is worth £19 billion.

Politicians couldn't make a privatised railway work so it is pretty unbelievable that we even suggest privatising military training never mind applauding it especially when it is to be delivered by private arms companies that are excluded from any ethical investing country, bank or charity. What damage could be done here and as a private business they will train whoever pays! Just who are we inviting to Wales?

So why do plaid support them dumbly emm.. because of the jobs...but what jobs? They have been given figures that are wrong. The Government has lied! Rhrodri Morgan is lying. The assembly have an office and staff dedicated to making this academy happen what ever and it isn't because half the deal has been already dumped by the MOD!!

And what about more autonomy for Wales? Isn't that jeopardised by having ALL uk military training in Wales?

Balance of ideology and pragmatism for Plaid ic Wales, United Kingdom -PLAID Cymru entered Government with rank- and-file members in good heart and high spirits. Labour, the

Plaid slammed over St Athan criticism ic Wales, PLAID Cymru was yesterday accused of endangering Wales’ chances of winning a Ministry of Defence training contract potentially worth up to £4bn. ... Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats had attempted ...

Plaid MEP questions defence academy ePolitix, A row has broken out over the Plaid Cymru vice-president's questioning of a new military training academy in Wales. Ahead of a meeting of the party's ruling

Blog news

Peace dividend? Peter Black

Speak now - or forever hold your peace Huw Lewis

South Wales Blunderers David Jones MP for Clwyd West; Shadow Minister for Wales

Great principles: atrocious politics Paul Flynn

St Athan Slaughter

Dragon's Eye Glyn Davies Tory Politican

School Jobs Con!

Tinkering, Tailoring, but not Soldiering and Spying

Lying politicans - Get the figures right on St Athan

Plaid MEP queries military centre
BBC News -Plaid Cymru's vice-president Jill Evans MEP has questioned whether the party should support a military training academy at St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan. ...

Dragons Eye 15th Nov 2007 A leading Plaid Cymru figure Jill Evans asks whether the party should back a military academy

It is you who have got it wrong. YOUR figures are wrong - want to put a bet on it? Its 19bn. And where did this figure of 5,000 jobs come from? That is pure spin!
How many jobs at St Athan? 1,100 and nothing like near 5,000 jobs promised and that Rhodri Morgan was drinking champagne to celebrate!

PCS the union that represents many MOD staff says that the number of jobs in scope of package 1 has dropped from 1500 to 1100. These 400 posts are those not directly linked to training delivery. Package 2 has been dumped by the government as it is too expensive.

Time for some honesty from our politicians!!

This contract will be the largest PFI/PPP project ever undertaken by the Ministry of Defence and will be the largest partnering arrangement ever undertaken in the UK. A Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for DTR in simplistic terms means that the winning consortia will effectively own all of the real estate and services for training for the next 25 years. For this they will be paid an annual sum,and must, by law, make a profit for their shareholders. The contract is worth £19 billion

For more information See http://www.cynefinywerin.org.uk/index.php?docid=287 see also our blog http://www.metrixconsortium.blogspot.com/
http://www.nomurderacademyatstathans.com/

our briefings on:Qinetiq - http://www.cynefinywerin.org.uk/index.php?docid=286
Raytheon - http://www.cynefinywerin.org.uk/index.php?docid=287
and our cluster bombs press release - http://www.cynefinywerin.org.uk/index.php?docid=288

The politicans who lie - can't get their facts right - misleading the Welsh People

Peace dividend?
4 hours ago by Peter Black The relentless bombardment of initiatives from Plaid Cymru MP Adam Price and the Party's Vice-President, Jill Evans MEP over the last few months has been difficult to keep up with. To be fair, no matter how much one disagrees with some ...Peter Black AM - http://peterblack.blogspot.com/ - References
Speak now - or forever hold your peace
2 hours ago by Huw Lewis Ieuan Wynn Jones’ silence over the barmy “defence” policy proposals of his own Vice President, Jill Evans MEP continues to be deafening. One wonders whether, given that this senior member of his party is now formally to propose that an ...Huw Lewis - http://www.huwlewis.org.uk/ - References
South Wales Blunderers
7 hours ago by David Jones Jill Evans, who is a Plaid Cymru MEP, says that the party should not support the proposed tri-service defence academy at St Athan and that the development would be “inconsistent with the spirit of the its defence policy and pacifist ...David Jones, MP - http://davidjonesclwydwest.blogspot.com/

MOD plans for St Athan in disarrayafter package 2 dumped!!

Private Eye 9th-22nd Nov HP Sauce

Plans to privatise training of the armed forces, six years in gestation, are in disarray after the Ministry of Defence last month pulled half the £16 billion PFI deal it was negotiating with Metrix, a consortium of Qinetiq, EDS and Land Securities.

While “package 1” of the contract, for equipment and engineering training goes ahead “package 2” on logistics, security, intelligence, personnel and policing, has been pulled (that is, “work to explore possible synergies and economies of scale across the programme as a whole has concluded that there are insufficient efficiencies to move forward”, as Defence Minister Derek Twigg put it).

As far as more sites and about half the MOD training staff are covered by the abandoned package, the decision poses serious questions about the 2bn savings the deal is supposed to deliver (details of which the MoD won’t divulge but which almost certainly involve the usual PFI fiddle factors)

The word is that the RAF was happy to go along with package1 sell off, which was largely on its patch, but the army put its foot down on package 2 where it had more say.

Petition to the PM re Metrix & St Athan

We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister
to Initiate an independent investigation into the awarding of the Defence Training contract to MetriX and the potential conflict of interest with the involvement of QinetiQ. In particular the decision to remove all defence training from Cosford thus removing all historic links and asociation with the Royal Air Force going back over 60 years. We would urge you to reconsider the rationale for the privatisation of 3,400 dedicated civil servants as part of this programme. More details..

This contract will be the largest PFI/PPP project ever undertaken by the Ministry of Defence and will be the largest partnering arrangement ever undertaken in the UK. A Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for DTR in simplistic terms means that the winning consortia will effectively own all of the real estate and services for training for the next 25 years. For this they will be paid an annual sum, and must, by law, make a profit for their shareholders. The contract is worth £19 billion. A high profit margin will be made on the support services which go with it, these include catering, cleaning, transport, reprographics, administration etc. The large plots of real estate and buildings “surplus to requirement” will create additional profit. Thousands of civil servants will be directly affected by this massive sell off to the private sector
Submitted by ROBERT O'HARNEY – Deadline to sign up by: 22 January 2008 – Signatures: 1,214
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Save-Cosford/

Will Raytheon pull out of St Athan Deal!

I heard a rumour that Raytheon are becoming lukewarm on DTR package 1. Apparently they had a bigger stake in package 2, which of course is now defunct.

Makes sense - Pull out Raytheon - out of St athan and out of Wales!

No reply from Nick Clegg on St Athan!

Many thanks for this information, which we will pass on to Chris. You ask whether Nick Clegg has a view on this issue; we obviously cannot speak for him, and suggest you contact his office directly.

Yours sincerely,
Anna
--
Anna Harvey
Campaign Team
Chris Huhne for Leader
http://www.chris2win.org/

Obviously I am trying to contact him!
Contact page says Campaign Manager Anna Werrin
anna@chris2win.org
Westminster Campaign Office
Elliot House, 10-12 Allington Street, London SW1E 5EH 020 7808 7366 thanks! literature@chris2win.org
Questions for Chris
If you have a question for Chris Huhne about policy or leadership issues, please send them here. chris@chris2win.org
Eastleigh Office
109A Leigh Road, Eastleigh SO50 9DR info@chris2win.org

Improving access to the Airport for Metrix - arms dealers

Improving access to Cardiff International Airport

Following the public exhibitions held in early October 2007 the Welsh Assembly Government has decided to hold two additional exhibitions.

The exhibitions are part of an ongoing study, which is investigating options for improving transport access to the airport and possible improvements at Culverhouse Cross.

Friday, 30 November10 am to 8 pm
Wenvoe Community Centre Old Port Road, Wenvoe, CF5 6AL

Saturday, 1 December 10 am to 5 pmCowbridge Leisure CentreThe Bear Field,Cowbridge, CF71 7DA Please note these two exhibitions are a repeat of those held in October and won't include any new material.

Shouldn't the WAG and Rhrodri Morgan consult more widely - surely there should be a exhibit in Cardiff?

Read

Taking aim at those who finance Cluster bombs

For more information

Our politicans on St Athan

McMercenaries -The truth about the Metrix Consortium

Murder Academy

Cynefin Y Werin

PCS WELCOME U TURN ON MOD Privatisation

PCS: Union welcomes MoD U-turn on training privatisation

Thursday, 25 Oct 2007 16:22

The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) welcomed today’s announcement by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to halt the privatisation of approximately 4,000 staff who train the armed forces in driving armoured vehicles, lorries and jeeps as well as languages.

The union hailed the decision to keep one half of defence training in the public sector as a victory for common sense which would ensure world class training for the armed forces whilst providing value for money for the taxpayer.

PCS called on the MoD to see sense and halt the privatisation of the other half of defence training which includes technical and mechanical training. The union warned that pushing ahead with remaining half of defence training would represent poor value for money and lead to a loss of knowledge and experience as staff would refuse to relocate to the new training base in South Wales.

The main sites that will be remaining in the public sector are: Worthy Down and Marchwood in Winchester, Southwark Park in Portsmouth, Leconfield n Hull, , Aldershot, Beaconsfield and Chicksands in Cambridgeshire.

PCS members are currently voting on further national strike action across the civil service as part of the union’s campaign against job cuts, below inflation pay and privatisation. The campaign has already seen two strongly supported national one day strikes this year. The ballot closes on 31 October 2007 and the result is expected to be announced shortly after.

Commenting, Mark Serwotka, PCS general secretary, said: “Thanks to the well argued case put by PCS, the MoD have rightly recognised that keeping the linguistics and driver training of armed forces in the public sector, not only represents value for money but ensures the continuity in world class training. They now have to see sense and recognise that privatising the remainder of defence training will result in poor value for money and a poorer quality of training for our armed forces as experienced staff refuse to relocate. The union can take heart from this announcement and will be making a renewed effort to convince the MoD that the remaining privatisation is unnecessary and damaging.”

ENDS

Notes to editors:

For further information, interviews and comment please contact
Alex Flynn PCS national press officer on 020 7801 2820 or 07833 978216.

PCS, the Public and Commercial Services Union is the union
representing civil and public servants in central government. It has over 315,000 members in over 200 departments and agencies. It also represents workers in parts of government transferred to the private sector. PCS is the UK’s sixth largest union and is affiliated to the TUC. The general secretary is Mark Serwotka and the president is Janice Godrich.

Alex Flynn
National Press Officer
Public and Commercial Services Union
160 Falcon Rd
London SW11 2LN

Direct line: 020 7801 2747
Mobile: 07833 978 216
Fax: 020 7924 1847

1500 jobs Not going to St Athan

Food for thought at army camp
this is hampshire.net - Winchester,England,UK
The consortium Metrix, which will provide military training, plans to move the Staff and Personnel Training School to St Athan. ...

Support for resolution on military academy.

Wales FESC, part of the new union for lecturers UCU, will now back the resolution at the upcoming Stop The War conference.

The proposed super-academy represents, among other things, an insidious development in the privatisation of education and training. Among the arms merchants and ex-MOD insiders of the Metrix consortium which will run the academy is that great British institution the Open University.

The campaign to stop the school of death at St Athan received a minor setback when SWP members and supporters ensured Cardiff Stop The War Coalition rejected our resolution for the STW conference! The resolution is already on the conference agenda but support from Cardiff STW would clearly have increased its chances of success.

Resolution on the St Athan Military Academy
This coalition notes:
The MOD’s decision to both centralise and privatise its training at a new complex at RAF St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan, to open fully in 2013.
The award of a £14bn government contract for this to the Metrix consortium, involving among others Qinetiq, a privatised wing of the MOD led by ex-MOD John Chisholm, and Raytheon, manufacturer of the cluster bombs and depleted uranium weapons that have killed and maimed civilians in Iraq, Lebanon and elsewhere.
The lack of public consultation on the project and lack of criticism or even debate in the mass media, or from supposedly anti-war MPs Welsh AMs, or the Welsh TUC.

This coalition believes:
That the new complex, on a scale hitherto unseen in the UK, will be the site of training of all branches of the armed forces for the “War on Terror”; in other words, for further war on the nations of the Global South and for the suppression of protest and civil liberties in the UK and throughout the world.
That the complex will represent a significant militarisation of the Welsh economy with a major impact on the lives of South Wales residents.
That the Welsh Assembly government has sold this package on the promise of jobs for South Wales, but (a) most jobs at St Athan will involve the redeployment of skilled workers and teachers from elsewhere, leaving low-paid unskilled work for the local labour force, and (b) the closure of training centres throughout the UK will actually lead to greater unemployment overall.
That it is contradictory to oppose imperialist wars, or the assault on civil liberties, if we do not equally oppose the training for these under the pretext of our ‘defence’.

This coalition resolves:
To oppose the creation of the St Athan academy.
To organise a mass protest at the site of the academy and to facilitate events throughout the UK educating people about the reality of the academy.
To win the support of trade unions, student unions and activist groups in building an international campaign; to call on MPs, MEPs and AMs to support this.
To call on the UK government to solve the problem of unemployment in South Wales and areas affected by MOD closures by instead investing in socially useful jobs in health, education, construction etc, and the development of peaceful and environmentally friendly technology.

Murder Academy Echo editor quits...

Echo editor quits post HoldTheFrontPage.co.uk, 18 Oct 2007...

Editor who boasts that he 'won' St Athan Murder Academy for Wales quits. got it wrong on this one, lets hope the new editor has some 'green' credentials!

Richard has led major campaigns such as that which helped to win the St Athan Metrix contract for South Wales. In May, 2005, he summed up the paper’s direction, saying: "I want to continue the Echo's positioning as the people's paper - representing them, campaigning for the things they care about, challenging authorities on their behalf and being as relevant as possible to them."
The paper sells 50,422 copies Monday-Friday, down in the latest ABCs 9.6 per cent year-on-year.

St Athan photos

St Athan photos, maps, books, memories - Francis Frith
St Athan old photos, old maps, books and memories from The Francis Frith Collection.

Statement of Opposition to the St Athan Defence Training Academy

The St Athan Defence Training Academy is a planned military training centre to be located near the village of St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales.

The Academy is expected to provide training in the science and art of warfare not just to the British military, but to soldiers from armies all over the world. This training will be provided by a private consortium of arms companies and educational bodies at an estimated cost to taxpayers of £14 billion – public money that could be spent on addressing problems of climate change, alternative energy production, public health, sustainable food production, affordable housing and education.

By far the largest single investment since devolution, the St Athan Academy commits the future of Wales to a culture and economy based on militarism, the making of weapons and the making of war.

1. We oppose the St Athan Defence Training Academy on principle, because we want Wales’s long-standing commitment to justice and peace to be the basis for our international relationships. This Academy should not be built.

2. We oppose the St Athan Academy for violating the Welsh Assembly Government’s specific commitments to sustainable development and responsible international citizenship.

3. We call for a firm and renewed commitment to creatinga green, sustainable and ethical Wales.

4. We call for an open public debate over the militarisation of the Welsh economy, its education and society, and a full discussion of the consequences of this for us, as well aspeople throughout the rest of the world.