MoD Job Cuts

News that the MoD is to cut one thousand jobs should be welcomed. It is a few years since my time at the MoD (before my conscience got the better of me), but from what I am told things haven't changed. It is over staffed and many Civil Servants build careers by empire building, so it is about time there was a cull.

That said, the Public Commercial Services Union have a point in their comment. I saw loads of restructuring and reorganisation during my 14 years, but rarely, if ever, saw jobs cut at the highest echelons of the Department.

I would actually like to see this taken a bit further. The MoD went through a ruthless process of civilianisation - getting rid of many of the jobs of servicemen simply because it was cheaper to employ civilians. One of the impacts of this is that our troops postings became more and more focused on the front line and added to the pressure they were under; we are seeing some of the effects of this now. It also has the potential to impact on the effectiveness of the front line.

As a logistician, keeping the front line supplied is the be-all and end-all of your job in theatre. Having first-hand experience of the way the supply chain works from back to front has to have an impact on your ability to find solutions when equipment shortages arise, so we should make sure there are posts in our HQs for forces personnel so that they can use that experience when it matters.