NOVEMBER 11 is forever on our calendars as Remembrance Day. But sadly, you don’t need a very long memory to recall people who have lost their lives due to armed conflict.

The number of UK military and civilian deaths in Afghanistan since 2001 currently stands at 433, with the injured at 584.

The Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal is as much about them as it is about honouring those who fought for liberty in 1939-45, or those who lost their lives in the “war to end all wars” in 1914-18, or all the other conflicts since.

This year, the Poppy Appeal aims to raise £42million. Dorset contributed £600,000 last year and the new county fundraiser hopes eventually to reach £1m in a year.

With the Legion spending £1.7m a week on welfare work, it’s clear we all need to be as generous as we can.

It’s also clear that war is nowhere near to becoming just a memory.