Gurkha Veterans Not Allowed into UK...

[Lord Pounder]

That said I don't think their last sucession of leaders have been up to much, ever since Kennedy got the boot. I think this is the first time I've noticed Clegg do anything worth while. Although I can't say I'm a close follower of politics.

Their permanent leaders haven't been up to much since Paddy Ashdown quit, although Vince Cable came across as by far the best of the three party leaders during his stint.

As a party they have some good people, Lembit aside. I have met Alistair Carmichael and a number of others and they came across as pretty genuine, for career politicians.

[Big Orange]

I realise that the clean cut Cameron is more presentable than the dreary Flush Gordon and his band of snide, deluded colleagues, however I agree that the Liberal Democrats are the best choice at the moment and I'll won't waste my vote. I'm worried the 2010s will be the 1980s again, with the Tories setting back our country even further than it is now under discredited Friedmanomics (the Labour's taxing and spending is seen by many as the main culprit for our current woes, when it is more complicated than that).

[Dartzap]

Slight necro, but I feel it is worth it (and I do apologize to any mods in the area who feel otherwise)

Gurkhas win right to settle in UK

All Gurkha veterans who retired before 1997 with at least four years' service will be allowed to settle in the UK, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has said.

Ms Smith told MPs she was "proud to offer this country's welcome to all who have served in the brigade of Gurkhas".

It comes after a high-profile campaign by Joanna Lumley and other supporters of Gurkha rights - and an embarrassing Commons defeat for the government.

Some 36,000 Gurkhas who left before 1997 had been denied UK residency.

Ms Lumley, the actress who has been the public face of the campaign on behalf of the Gurkhas, said: "This is the welcome we have always longed to give."

She called Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who she had met earlier, a "brave man who has made today a brave decision on behalf of the bravest of the brave".

Gurkhas, who are recruited from Nepal, have been part of the British Army for almost 200 years.

'Sacrifice and distinction'

Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling said the U-turn by the government was a "great victory for a well-run campaign, that has publicly embarrassed ministers".

He said it was a shame that the government had had to be dragged "kicking and screaming" to the decision.

Ms Smith's statement was greeted by cheers from MPs.



She told the Commons: "I'm delighted that we have now been able to agree - across government, across the House and with the Gurkhas' representatives - new settlement rights that all those who have served us so well, so highly deserve."

Under the measures outlined in the House, Gurkhas will be allowed to settle in the UK with their spouses and dependent children under 18.

Ms Smith said she expected to welcome 10,000 to 15,000 applications from Gurkhas over the next two years.

She added that some 1,400 outstanding applications for settlement currently before the UK Border Agency would be processed on the basis of the new policy "as a matter of urgency" before 11 June.

Ms Smith added that the Gurkhas had served the UK "with great courage, sacrifice and distinction and they continue to make a vital and valued contribution to our operations around the world".

Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, welcomed the statement.

"The prime minister and the minister have finally listened to the will of this House and the will of the British public," he said.

Keith Vaz, chairman of the home affairs select committee, said it was a "historic" day for British democracy and said 21 May will be "remembered as Gurkha Rights Day".

'Sympathy and support'

After the vote, Gurkha veterans and campaigners met the prime minister at Downing Street for what Ms Lumley called an "impromptu garden party".

Gurkha Justice Campaign lawyer David Enright said there was still work to be done to ensure that veterans received pensions in the UK, but said "that is for tomorrow".

He added: "The people wanting to come here are not coming for pensions. They are coming here, on the whole, because they want to work."

The prime minister suffered a shock Commons defeat on the issue, forcing ministers to reconsider existing rules on how many Gurkhas can settle in the UK.

It was followed by an extraordinary piece of Westminster theatre when Ms Lumley - whose father was an officer with the 6th Gukha Rifles - came face-to-face with minister Phil Woolas in BBC studios and quickly won public assurances over future policy at an impromptu joint press conference.

Speaking after Thursday's vote, Mr Woolas acknowledged that the actress had "given a focus" to the campaign, and that she had "campaigned tirelessly" for the Gurkhas.

At Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, Mr Brown told the House of Commons that he had a "great deal of sympathy and support" for the Gurkhas.

He added: "I believe it is possible for us to honour our commitments to the Gurkhas and to do so in a way that protects the public finances."

Beeb

Finally, the U-turn has happened. And now we shall see gyms, football games, the office quiz and other such things become all the more interesting.

[Ubiquitous]

Brown should have just done this in the first place and saved the torment of all those old veterans. What a waste of time and money.

[Lord Pounder]

How typical of Gordon Brown at the moment. He doesn;t even have the power to control his own back bench. I do have one question, what is Joanna Lumley's connection to the Gurkha's? Did they just ask her to represent them or is there some relationship?

[atg]

How typical of Gordon Brown at the moment. He doesn;t even have the power to control his own back bench. I do have one question, what is Joanna Lumley's connection to the Gurkha's? Did they just ask her to represent them or is there some relationship?

IIRC, her father served with a Gurkha regiment.