Al Carns, the decorated former special forces officer and Labour MP, has resigned as an Armed Forces minister after accusing the Government of failing to provide adequate funding for defence and mishandling legislation dealing with the Northern Ireland Troubles.
Mr Carns, who served in the Royal Marines for 24 years and was awarded the Military Cross and Distinguished Service Order, said he could no longer remain in office while ministers pursued a defence investment plan that was neither sufficiently funded nor suited to modern warfare.
He also said he had been unable to ignore what he described as the continued failure to address the treatment of Northern Ireland veterans facing historic investigations and legal proceedings.
In a resignation speech to the Commons on June 16, Mr Carns said the character of warfare was changing rapidly, pointing to the growing use of drones in Ukraine and the need for the armed forces to combine advanced systems with equipment that could be produced at scale.
“The reality is that we are spending too much time preparing for last year’s war, not tomorrow’s,” he told MPs.
Mr Carns said the financial settlement underpinning the defence investment plan was inadequate even if the strategy itself had been correct. He argued that national security and economic security should be treated as connected priorities rather than competing demands.
Al Carns attacks approach to Northern Ireland veterans
His third reason for resigning was the Government’s handling of the proposed Northern Ireland Troubles legislation, which is intended to replace the Conservative government’s Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023.
Mr Carns said former service personnel had endured uncertainty for too long, while political agreements had been made that were not available to those who served under lawful orders. He warned that prolonged inquests, inquiries and legal proceedings risked presenting the state as the aggressor and causing further distress to veterans.
“The IRA failed to achieve its political ends through the use of terrorist tactics, and we must be exceptionally careful that we do not help them achieve those ends through other means,” he said.
His comments followed warnings from former senior SAS officers, who have argued that the legislation could leave veterans feeling abandoned and expose them to renewed legal action over events during the Troubles.
The Government has maintained that the previous legacy Act was legally flawed and lacked support across Northern Ireland. During a Commons debate in January, Mr Carns said the new legislation was intended to pursue truth, justice and reconciliation while ensuring that the legal process did not itself become a punishment for veterans.
He also told MPs at the time that the Ministry of Defence would work with veterans’ representatives to provide support and protections, including allowing former service personnel to give evidence from home rather than attend proceedings in Northern Ireland.
Mr Carns resigned on June 11, hours after John Healey stepped down as Defence Secretary over the same dispute about defence spending. He has since returned to the Labour back benches as MP for Birmingham Selly Oak.
