Military co-responders supporting the ambulance service during the Covid-19 pandemic (Steve Parsons/PA)
(Picture: PA Archive)The Chief of the Defence Staff has said the military is “busy” and should not be treated as “spare capacity” as ministers prepare to deploy 1,200 troops to cover for striking public sector staff this winter.
The armed forces need to focus on their “primary role”, and it would be “slightly perilous” to treat them as the “ultimate backstop” for incidents such as major industrial action, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin said.
