MoD 'insult' to troops

Families of British troops in Iraq will have to pay to send them "comfort" parcels, it was revealed today.

The announcement was slipped out by the Ministry of Defence and the Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram, who admitted ending the free service would be "unpopular".

The move was instantly condemned as heartless pennypinching by relatives of loved ones keeping the peace in conditions of acute danger. Tory shadow defence secretary Nicholas Soames declared: "This carries meanness too far."

Pointing out that parcels from home were part of a welfare package seen as highly important by those serving in Iraq, he warned that morale could be hit. The move follows rows over inadequate military supplies for troops.

The Ministry of Defence said the concession, which has operated since the war began, will end in a matter of weeks, when One Mechanised Brigade takes over from 20 Armoured Brigade. The system had allowed service families to send packets of food and other comforts weighing up to two kilograms free of charge. Now they will be charged at inland first-class rates, at a cost of up to £7.23.

Mr Ingram claimed the scheme was unfair on troops serving in other countries where it did not apply. He also claimed the change was justified because "consumable goods" were now widely available to troops in Iraq. The change "should be seen in the context of the good welfare package enjoyed by all service personnel". That reassurance seemed unlikely to comfort soldiers or their families.

Mr Soames said: "The welfare package is extremely important and this could have implications for morale."

The anger was sharpened by the timing of the announcement, slipped out on a Friday, when few MPs are at Westminster.

The Liberal Democrats also weighed in furiously. Defence spokesman Paul Keetch said: "Our troops in Iraq, unlike most other deployments overseas, face the daily prospect of losing their lives for Tony Blair and the Government.

"The least the Government could do is to allow their families to send them decent food and packages from home.

"This is ministerial pennypinching of the worst sort."