Limit on what troops can do, says minister

Defence Minister Adam Ingram today accepted there is a "limit" to the demands that can be placed on Britain's armed forces.

Mr Ingram was speaking after a report by the government's spending watchdog revealed "serious weaknesses" in the military's ability to go to war.

The National Audit Office (NAO) said Britain's increasingly onerous overseas commitments mean funds are not being spent on preparing troops for battle.

Mr Ingram agreed the forces have been under exceptional pressure in recent years. "There have been people we have asked an awful lot of, and there's a limit to how much we can continue to ask of them," he said.

But he denied that the effectiveness of the military had been compromised.

"Have we failed in any our tasks?" he asked. "The answer has to be no." The UK had seen the largest sustained increase in defence expenditure for 20 years, the minister claimed.

The Conservatives say the NAO report exposes serious shortcomings. "This Government is effectively sending our forces to war with one arm tied behind their back," said shadow defence spokesman Michael Ancram.