This morning’s broadcast headlines continue to be dominated by the latest plans outlined by the Prime Minister to tackle the migrant crisis in France.
Calais migrants
All papers report on the measures announced by David Cameron yesterday to help alleviate some of the disruption caused by the Calais migrant crisis. Amongst the reporting and in The Guardian is the promise made by the Prime Minister that MOD land will be used to ease the transport gridlock around Dover.
Libya
The Times reports that hundreds of British troops are being lined up to go to Libya as part of a major new international mission to help stabilise the North African country and combat ISIL. The paper writes that the operation looks set to be activated once the rival warring factions inside Libya agree to form a single government of national unity but that it is highly unlikely that Britain's warplanes which are committed to the fight against ISIL in Iraq will be offered. Our position is below.
The UK, along with international partners, is supporting the process to form a recognised Libyan government and we are developing plans to provide support once this is done; it is too early to discuss the exact nature of this.
Defence spending
In an interview in the FT, Britain's top diplomat, Sir Simon Fraser, stepped down yesterday saying that he was pleased that David Cameron has maintained Defence spending at the 2% NATO target.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said on 8 July:
By increasing defence spending in real terms every year and meeting the NATO 2 per cent target for the rest of the decade, we are sending a strong message to both our allies and enemies. It underlines the government’s commitment to defence and the national security of our country.
Jihad mail to Army wives
The Sun reports that jihadists have sent threatening letters to British troops’ wives and that Lincolnshire police warned all soldiers’ families to change their social media settings to stop them being tracked down. We are aware of an incident being investigated by Lincolnshire Police. Our statement is below.
An MOD Spokesperson said:
Keeping personnel and their families safe is of the utmost importance and all personnel are given clear guidance on appropriate social media use. We do not talk about specific security measures.
Image of the day
On Friday 24th July as part of NATOs ongoing mission to police Baltic airspace, RAF Typhoons intercepted 10 Russian aircraft during a single Baltic Air Patrol, Quick Reaction Alert mission.
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