APPENDIX 8
Copy of submission from the Chairman of
the Reserves Forces' and Cadets' Association to the Ministry of
Defence (May 2002)
BACKGROUND
1. The Council of the Reserve Forces' and
Cadets' Associations (RFCA) welcomes the opportunity to comment
on the new chapter of the Strategic Defence Review as part of
the public discussion. At our recent meeting of the Executive
Committee of the Council for the Reserve Forces' and Cadets' Associations
(RFCA), we decided to respond formally by giving our considered
views from a volunteer reserve force perspective and to suggest
positive initiatives in which the 13 RFCAs can add value to the
delivery of a more effective homeland defence. This also includes
points raised in a useful informal debate involving some 22 Parliamentarians
in the House of Lords, on Thursday 14 March 2002, hosted by our
President, Lord Freeman.
2. The RFCAs provide that vital link to
the community and, through our regional structure (which incidentally
mirrors the Regional Government Areas within England) and our
strong full time and volunteer membership, we can add value, complement
and support the regional chains of command of all three Services.
So there is already an important RFCA footprint in place, which
needs to be harnessed better in the development of an effective
policy in any war against terrorism within the UK.
3. The Public Discussion Paper posed two
specific questions on Security and Defence of the UK that had
particular relevance to the Reserve Forces:
— Are there ways in which military
support to the civil authorities could be improved?
— As part of this, are there additional
or enhanced roles for our Reserve Forces (both in defence and
security and in overseas operations)?
I would like to deal with them separately and
then consider the enhanced role that the RFCAs can bring to this
evolving policy.
MILITARY SUPPORT
TO CIVIL
AUTHORITIES
4. It would be inappropriate for us to comment
in detail on the first question but as an important strand of
the tri-Service regional chain command, we feel that there are
ways that Defence can be better linked with the regional emergency
planning structure and the civilian emergency services. Increased
threats from asymmetric terrorism post September 11 mean that,
in the delivery of rapidly deployable forces, there is an equally
important military task to guard our own backyard from terrorist
attack. To achieve this, consideration should be given to the
following:
(a) At the strategic level, homeland defence
should be reinstated as a full military task in the support of
our deployed contingency forces to guard and sustain the home
base at all scales of effort.
(b) At the operational and regional levels,
consideration should be given to improving the existing regional
command structures, developing integrated tri-Service planning
procedures and implementing better linkage with the national emergency
planning services. Much of this happens already at the regional
level but, in our view, this needs to be formalised and resourced
appropriately.
5. The Volunteer Reserve Forces (VRF) represent
their communities and through their national, tri-Service footprint
provide an invaluable regional presence, not only in support of
the proposed homeland defence initiative but also by providing
military aid to the civil community (most notably the recent support
to eradicate foot and mouth and assistance in cases of flooding
and other natural disasters). Here people should not underestimate
the willingness of the VRF to help our civil authorities in time
of emergency or crisis but this cannot be institutionalised without
considering the cost. The VRF are funded on a tight budget to
train for their primary roles and they have accepted willingly
that they may be called out to serve in those roles to support
current or future operations, both voluntarily and compulsorily.
Additional homeland defence tasks will therefore need to be considered
carefully in terms of resourcing, size and structure, as well
as the impact it may have on their primary roles and the time
available to the reserves to achieve this.
6. In discussing the role and structures
of the VRF in support of homeland defence, the following factors
need to be considered:
(a) The mission statements of all VRF include
the military task of "maintaining links with the local community
and society at large", so the mechanisms and the linkages
exist at least in part already.
(b) Although SDR reduced the national VRF
footprint, the latter still provides a valuable defence template,
which needs to be better integrated into the national emergency
planning structure. Moreover, the SDR New Chapter provides a timely
opportunity to examine where there are genuine gaps and to determine
how these can best be filled. Consideration, for instance, should
be given to improving the current TA yeomanry and infantry structures
to see, with appropriate resourcing, whether a more coherent footprint
and better command and tactical structures could be achieved to
support homeland defence better.
(c) The VRF bring both military and civilian
transferable skills to the situation.
(d) The VRF bring considerable local knowlege
to any situation.
(e) The VRF are a cost effective resource,
since apart from set-up and training costs, you only pay for them
when you want them.
(f) Reserve legislation (RFA 96) provide
the necessary legal basis to call out VRF to support Homeland
Defence tasks against terrorism (except for Military Aid to the
Civil Power (MACP)). There will, however, be a need to improve
the mechanisms for call out at the local level and to capture
the invaluable local skills on effective management information
systems.
7. In summary to Question One, we believe
that it is important to maximise all the above by formalising
the homeland defence role as an additional task for the VRF, resource
the training, consider limited VRF expansion to footprint and
structure and develop mechanisms in particular for the following:
call out, legal aspects, employer support and administration.
We feel strongly, however, that this should not be at the expense
of their priority war-fighting roles.
ADDITIONAL OR
ENHANCED ROLES
FOR THE
VRF
8. In answer to the second question, your
paper suggests that the war against asymmetric terrorism will
require different skill sets. We feel that in order to find these
new skills, operational planners will need to look across the
complete spectrum of defence manpower and, by adopting a total
force concept, maximise the skill base provided by regulars, reserves
and civilians. To this end, operational planners should be prepared
to call out VRF ahead of, or at the same time as, our regular
forces if there is a need for a particular skill set. Consideration
should also be given to using their civilian transferable skills
more proactively. This will require a certain level of data capture.
9. Overseas Operations. In support
of deployed operations against terrorism, the VRF bring a wide
spectrum of skills, some of which are in short supply in the regular
structure. These must not be reduced as a quid pro quo
for homeland defence but be developed carefully as part of the
overall defence requirement. It is at the specialist end of the
spectrum that most consideration should be given to enhancing
certain relevant VRF skills. In particular we would consider the
following VRF specialist categories as being important for enhancement:
Special Forces, linguists, psyops, intelligence specialists, media
operations, CIMIC, NBC and specialist medicine, in particular
aero medicine.
10. UK Defence and Security. In addition
to their local knowledge and experience, members of the VRF can
provide the following roles to homeland defence, some of which
may need to be enhanced:
(a) The provision of formed and disciplined
bodies of manpower for general duties, key point security (both
area and point) and logistic and administrative support. Such
a role will rely upon the use of formed units, with a coherent
and effective chain of command and here the TA lends itself to
this role rather than individual reservists. Uniformed military
presence of this type provides the general public with massive
reassurance and stability at a time of confusion and panic. This
was one of the key lessons from New York. This could be further
enhanced, for instance, through the use of the newley formed pioneer
units, who would provide greater logistic utility especially in
situations of mass casualty terrorism, and regional engineer units.
Within the overall concept of homeleand defence we should not
ignore the potential contribution from the VRF of the other Services.
In the past the RNR and the RMR has, for example, contributed
to port security, including ship search teams, and the RAuxAF
have provided airfield defence elements, both on and off-base.
Such skills, and the manpower trained in them, could be in short
supply in any future anti-terrorism scenario.
(b) In time of national or regional confusion,
there will be need for an effective and coherent command structure.
Emergency communications can be provided through the existing
TA national defence signals brigade, where careful enhancements
would make this capability a force multiplier. Reservist staff
officers and watch keepers could enhance the regional chains of
command at little cost.
(c) There will be a need to consider how
best to enhance the specialist requirements to counter terrorism
in the UK. Relevant specialist capabilities already exist within
the VRF, both as units and as individuals. We recommend that enhancements
should be considered for the following VRF specialist capabilities:
NBC and EOD.
11. In summary to Question Two, the VRF
can provide cost effective enhanced roles for homeland defence,
both as formed units providing general duties or specialist capabilities,
and as individuals enhancing the regional command structure.
ROLE OF
THE RFCAS
12. How can the RFCAs help in the delivery
of this new initiative? We are convinced that this new development
provides defence with an excellent opportuntiy to capitalise on
the national and regional strengths of the RFCAs and to formalise
them within the homeland defence concept. These roles should include:
(a) Defence Ambassadors. A focal point
for regional knowledge, local advice and wide contacts and the
ability to co-ordinate and deliver local support effectively.
Not only will there be a need to explain and market the proposals
arising from the SDR New Chapter to the local community but also
a need for us to act as the regional defence ambassadors through
the extended family of the RFCA voluntary membership in particular
in a time of regional crisis.
(b) Employer Support. The implementation
of operational employer support at the local level in time of
regional crisis as part the national NELC plan, as well as educating
local employers about the homeland defence concept in the regions.
(c) Public Relations. The delivery
of the operational PR plan to support the call out of the VRF
at the regional and local levels as part of DGCC's national plan,
as well as the long term marketing of the homeland defence message
through in-place RFCA PR mechanisms.
(d) Mobilisation. The delivery of
developing, specific roles to assist in the timely call out of
the VRF in times of regional crisis.
(e) Welfare. The delivery of local
welfare support to the families of those mobilised VRF, both locally
deployed and those overseas. This role will become increasingly
important with the increased reliance upon the VRF in this new
culture of mobilisation. Reserves are best looked after by the
reserve community and the RFCAs provide the continuity of care
and local links to achieve this.
SUMMARY
13. The RFCAs, therefore, have an important
role in helping to explain the concept of homeland defence, and
the role of the VRF within it, to the local community and to assist
the Regional Chains of Command in its delivery. We are considering
how these developments will affect our own structures and management,
both nationally and regionally, so that we are better placed to
meet this new environment. The Associations are a force for good
in the community and are ready to assist, in any way required,
in the detailed implementation of the SDR New Chapter as it affects
the VRF and the regions.
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