Defence Secretary Des Browne faced fresh anger over soldiers' pay last night after suggesting their low wages are justified because many would fail to get better-paid jobs outside the Army.
Mr Browne said young recruits were not paid as much as 'uniformed organisations in civilian street' because they lacked the qualifications needed for other jobs.
In a speech to the Royal British Legion's Scottish annual conference last June, Mr Browne also claimed military service made soldiers 'more employable'.
Although his comments went unnoticed at the time, they emerged yesterday as the conference's minutes were presented to this year's meeting in Perth.
The Royal British Legion attacked the remarks as 'deeply offensive', claiming they portrayed troops as 'too dim' to work as traffic wardens, police or firemen.
It comes just a day after General Sir Richard Dannatt, the head of the Army, complained that soldiers who risk death or injury on the front line are paid less than traffic wardens back home.
A young infantry soldier deployed to Afghanistan will earn £16,227, with operational allowances taking his pay to just over £20,000. That is less than the average £20,526 salary for traffic wardens.
Mr Browne told hundreds of delegates from Legion branches: 'Why don't we pay servicemen and women in a comparative rate to uniformed organisations in civilian street?
**Des Brown(with an e) is supposed to be fighting for the troops, still he and his worthless Labour lot would pay traffic wardens and PCSO's etc more than front line troops, after all they love petty minded pen pushers being little more than that themselves.
As with all socialists he hates the armed forces. With remarks like that is it any wonder that troops are leaving in ever greater numbers...
Des Browne another worthless New Labour cunt.
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