{"id":23590,"date":"2018-10-27T10:58:46","date_gmt":"2018-10-27T09:58:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thevoiceoflondon.co.uk\/?p=23590"},"modified":"2018-10-27T10:58:46","modified_gmt":"2018-10-27T09:58:46","slug":"women-in-combat-roles-a-mistake-says-former-army-colonel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/women-in-combat-roles-a-mistake-says-former-army-colonel\/","title":{"rendered":"Women in combat roles a \u2018mistake\u2019 says former Army Colonel"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>The decision by the government to allow women into all combat roles has been criticised by a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan.<\/strong><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Colonel Richard Kemp\u2019s comments come after the Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson announced that from Thursday, infantry roles across all the armed forces would be available to women.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Historic day for the military as <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GavinWilliamson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@GavinWilliamson<\/a> announces all roles are opened to women. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/8cScHc0SU6\">pic.twitter.com\/8cScHc0SU6<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Ministry of Defence \ud83c\uddec\ud83c\udde7 (@DefenceHQ) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DefenceHQ\/status\/1055487178489266177?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 25, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Kemp said: \u201cI think it\u2019s based entirely on gender equality which is desirable everywhere else, but I think if you subordinate operational combat effectiveness to gender equality then that can end up costing lives.\u201d <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This move marks the first-time women can apply for special forces roles like the SAS. <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Williamson praised the announcement as a historic day for the armed forces.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Women who are currently serving in all three branches of the armed forces are able to apply to transfer for infantry roles immediately and outside applicants will be able to apply in December.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I am absolutely delighted to announce that all roles in the military are now open to women. Our Armed Forces will now be determined by ability alone and not gender. This is a truly defining moment in the history of the Armed Forces.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Sir Gavin Williamson CBE MP (@GavinWilliamson) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GavinWilliamson\/status\/1055487412070162432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 25, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Ministry of Defence emphasised there would be no changes to the selection processes but for the first time the military would be determined by ability and not gender.<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Woman have been able to serve in operational capacities for years, and were allowed into combat facing roles since 2016, after former prime minister David Cameron lifted a previous ban. <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This decision led to the first female tank commanders qualifying and being deployed in Oman and the Baltic&#8217;s, bringing the British armed forces up-to-date with those of the US, Australia, Israel and even Afghanistan, where women make up to 20% of the military. <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, the previous head of the armed forces said on leaving the military this year: \u201cI want to say, Loud and Clear, that we need to do better at the advancement of women in the ranks of the armed forces.\u201d<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Women represent about 10% of the regular military, but only 3.6% of senior roles are held by women. <\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The M.O.D said: \u201c<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">While the military does not necessarily expect large numbers of women to apply for ground close combat roles, the changes are aimed at creating opportunities for individuals from all backgrounds and making the most of their talents.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201d<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Have your say: <\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Should women be allowed in combat for <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BritishArmy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@BritishArmy<\/a>? <br \/>Stay tuned for the latest updates.<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/VoL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#VoL<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Poll?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#Poll<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WomenInTheForces?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#WomenInTheForces<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Voice Of London UK (@VoiceOfLondonUK) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/VoiceOfLondonUK\/status\/1055822534766141441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 26, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><b>Words: Harry Lye | Subbing: Salvi Shahlaie | Picture: Wikimedia<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; The decision by the government to allow women into all combat roles has been criticised by a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan. Colonel Richard Kemp\u2019s comments come after the Defense Secretary Gavin&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":476,"featured_media":23527,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[75,115,134],"tags":[544,546,1025,1462,2717,3205,5793,6538,6957],"class_list":["post-23590","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-investigations","category-specials","category-uknews","tag-armed-forces","tag-army","tag-british-forces","tag-combat","tag-government","tag-investigations","tag-specials","tag-uk","tag-women"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO 4.9.8 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The decision by the government to allow women into all combat roles has been criticised by a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan. 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Colonel Richard Kemp\u2019s comments come after the Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson announced that from Thursday, infantry roles across all the armed forces would be available to women. https:\/\/twitter.com\/DefenceHQ\/status\/1055487178489266177?s=19 Kemp said:","inLanguage":"en-GB","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/#website"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/women-in-combat-roles-a-mistake-says-former-army-colonel\/#breadcrumblist"},"author":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/author\/editor1\/#author"},"creator":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/author\/editor1\/#author"},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2018\/10\/Afghan_082-1.jpg","@id":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/women-in-combat-roles-a-mistake-says-former-army-colonel\/#mainImage","width":1312,"height":1852,"caption":"Date \u00d0   October 2003\nLocation \u00d0 Kabul, Afghanistan\nPictures by Stuart Bingham\nStory by Belinda Steel\nRef: 5Div-03-040-0630\n\nOPERATION FINGAL \n\nColonel Richard Kemp, MBE, Commander British Forces, Kabul.\n\n\nCROWN COPYRIGHT\nHeadquarters 5th Division\nCopthorne Barracks\nShrewsbury SY3 8LZ\nTel 01743 262341\nFax 01743 262013\ne-mail hq5divpictures@btinternet.com"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/women-in-combat-roles-a-mistake-says-former-army-colonel\/#mainImage"},"datePublished":"2018-10-27T10:58:46+01:00","dateModified":"2018-10-27T10:58:46+01:00"},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/#website","url":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/","name":"Voice of London","description":"News for young Londoners","inLanguage":"en-GB","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/#organization"}}]},"og:locale":"en_GB","og:site_name":"Voice of London - News for young Londoners","og:type":"article","og:title":"Women in combat roles a \u2018mistake\u2019 says former Army Colonel - Voice of London","og:description":"The decision by the government to allow women into all combat roles has been criticised by a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan. 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