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Armed Forces Bill

I think that I speak as the only Member present and probably the only Member of this House who has served as a commanding officer and been invested with the powers to deal summarily with soldiers under my command. Before I go any further, let me assure the House that I come from a line of infantry officers—solid working class men who won their commissions in the field in the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment and the Sherwood Foresters—and I was proud to carry on that tradition regardless of any apparent class barriers that Labour Members may bring up.