COULD I please answer Tony Woodcock's assertions regarding our armed forces and treaties.

Firstly, the reduction in numbers within our forces is to do with our government's fiscal policies i.e. austerity and the need to cut funding.

The EU does not have any sway whatsoever over the numbers or deployment of our armed forces.

This is done within the Ministry of Defence at the behest of government.

The EU requests the participation of our armed forces, it does not order.

We can say no and have done so.

Article 42 does set out a common defence policy only regarding aggression and threats to our EU partners i.e. Russia, terrorism, etc.

If we were in trouble then it binds other member countries to come to our aid. It a mutual assurance policy.

It does not affect our NATO obligations. If it did the USA and Canada would let us know very quickly.

This is the same as some of the treaties we had with individual European countries before World War Two. Poland, Belgium, France et al.

Our forces cannot and will not go into action anywhere without our parliament's and government's approval, i.e. a House of Commons vote.

UK armed forces have been training with our EU and NATO partners since the war.

Our language, English, is the battlefield language.

Our commitment to NATO is the same as it ever was.

The emphasis can change depending on what is going on in the world.

Time does move on and with it the different kind of threats that we face.

In the European and North Atlantic spheres, we all have each others' backs, so to speak.

Mr Woodcock thinks if we came out of the EU we would be stronger militarily.

Not so.

If we come out we will go to the back of the mutual protection queue as well.

Remember. United we stand, divided we fall.

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