Furious Thatcher sacks Navy chief

Press, 20 May 1981, Page 8

Furious Thatcher sacks Navy chief

NZPA-Reuter London v - The British Navy Miriisteri Keith’ Speed, who challenged the Government’s policy on defence spending, was terday. Sacked by the Prime . ;Miriiste>'i>j’ (Mrs: Margaret Thatcher)..'.:, ~ / The’ sacking" at'-',a brief riieeting, came after/a warning by Mr Speed at 'the -Weekend :,.that7cutting,thevßoyal Navy/s destroyer; and'frigate fleet would/ scupper/iNATO arid. endanger every man; wbman/apd Child ;iii!/Britain. <Mrs>Thht'pficri was-.clearly in a - blind ’ fury'over the way •Mr Speed/attacked Govern* merit plans to cut defence spending by more.than's23oo million over the next three years; three-quarters ~of:.. it was to come from the Naval • budget. , Tory back-benchers: have been mobilised to Express their fears over plans for reshaping Britain’s defences. Mr Speed’s duties will be. taken over by the former Industry? Minister, Lord Trenchard,, who was appointed Minister, of State for Defence-in January. In his speech at the weekend Mr. Speed, knew he was burning his boats by appealing to the Government not to “irreversibly run down the „

ti z Mr Speed, who gave up the •,/ rank of lieutenant-comman--1; der in the Royal Naval Voiv/junteer Reserve when he took his post as Under-Secre--3 tary for Defence in May, t , 1979, was known as an able and enthusiastic Navy Minisf ter. But he failed to check his - week-end speech with the I - Defence Secretary (Mr J. ; Nott). It was pointed out that > his speech, to Tories in his constituency, did not go beyond normally accepted ' Conservative principles on r : ; , policy. ’ <’.7 Mr. Speed told his audience ' Jthat he believed some 1 ./suggestions for defence ‘ s -/spending cuts would “do immense damage to a unique • contribution; ? this country makes in a. European con- ’ text” and would ignore all 1 the lessons of history. / Ironically, Mr Speed was a .firm believer in the very • ideas being preached by Mr ’' Nott. “ He, too,.was conscious and concerned about the escalating cost of modern sophisticated warships — $249 million for a Type 22 frigate — and was negotiating with the Navy staff to keep the new “cut price” Type 23 frigates as simple, and cheap as possible.