Armed Forces Bill

That is an argument that can be had around a specific campaign such as the one in Iraq. I am grateful to my hon. Friend, but he knows that we disagree on that. The important point is that if people have agreed to serve in Her Majesty’s armed forces, there must be some sanction or control over their actions. My hon. Friend the Member for Hayes and Harlington referred to those who were shot at dawn during the first world war. I shall seek to catch your eye later, Mrs. Heal, to speak on that matter, with which I have great sympathies, but there is a great difference between a conscript, who has no choice over going to war, and those who take the conscious decision to join Her Majesty’s armed forces. Without some kind of sanction, how would one operate in any circumstances? We cannot have armed forces who pick and choose when and where they serve.