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Gurkhas

I am grateful to the Home Secretary for advance sight of her statement, which I welcome enormously. The Prime Minister and the Minister have finally listened to the will of the House and the will of the British public, which is devoutly to be wished for. The campaign has run for many years. Six years ago, the Gurkhas attended our conference in Harrogate. We have had two wars since the campaign began. It is only through the perseverance of that campaign and the continued pressing of the Government by hon. Members and those outside this place that the Gurkhas finally have justice. Does the Home Secretary not realise that dither and delay on that scale only emphasises the gracelessness of the whole process and of the Government's decision? Given the simplicity of the principle involved—that the people who fight and die for this country should have the right to live in this country—surely she should reflect on whether the Government's moral arteries have been somewhat furred in the Government's failure to grapple with the issue. Why did it take so long to recognise the public backing for that fundamental principle and the important claim that the Gurkhas have on the hearts of the British people?