Johnny Mercer and the Afghanistan war

Johnny Mercer, the minister for veterans’ affairs. ‘If these egregious parts of the bill had passed into law, this might well have prevented the prosecution of the alleged crimes being reported to him,’ writes Lt Col Rev Nicholas Mercer. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

I read with interest your report on Johnny Mercer MP’s appearance at the independent inquiry relating to events in Afghanistan (UK minister says he ‘cannot disprove’ claims Afghans were unlawfully killed, 20 February).

I note from your article that, while the minister was being provided with reports into alleged unlawful killings in Afghanistan, he was, at the same time, “campaigning to halt a wave of largely false claims of abuse conducted by British soldiers in Iraq”.