UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps: Woke policies are divisive

By UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps

I am a strong believer that our Armed Forces should represent the people they serve, the British public.

We need to do more to encourage people from a wide range of backgrounds to serve – and we need to ensure that beyond basic security requirements, no-one who wants to serve should feel excluded.

And there is strong evidence that we are seeing a surge of new applicants, with figures showing army applications at a six-year high and Navy applications at an eight year high.

We need to ensure that whatever background people are from, they are treated with respect, protected from abuse and bullying, and are treated equally to their colleagues and peers.

But the details of some of the suggested plans that have been revealed this weekend are not about protecting personnel or improving working conditions for minority groups.

They are about a divisive woke culture and the gradual introduction of controversial leftist thinking into the military workplace which threatens to distract us from our core mission – being a lethal force that can defeat our enemies.

So let me reassure people: there will be no lowering of security standards on my watch for any reason.

Remembrance events will remain Christian. Those suggesting otherwise fail to recognise the core beliefs and morals that our country and its people are about. And I say that as a Jewish Minister. It should not be offensive to anyone.

Many of the woke policies – such as compulsory unconscious bias training, which has been widely rubbished and scrapped for the civil service – are divisive.

They have the effect of setting individuals against each other, not bringing them together as an Armed Forces family.

Other suggestions have proved deeply unpopular and troubling, such as the introduction of gender neutral toilets. We will review all those policies.

Over time, a woke culture has seeped into public life and it is poisoning common sense discourse.

Anyone who questions it is dismissed out of hand. And anyone who does want a woke armed forces would take us back to square one like the Labour Party.

I am in a position to challenge this philosophy and I will.

There are serious issues we have to work on and I promise to address those during my term in service.

But the drumbeat of those who despise Britain, her proud history and the culture of her great people, is failing the Armed Services and the British public.

First published in the UK Express

It’s time for common sense not divisiveness.

That’s why I’m commissioning a root and branch review of ethnicity, diversity and inclusivity policies across defence. pic.twitter.com/0biPwTrO5Z

— Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) February 11, 2024

Review of MoD’s diversity policies ordered by ‘furious’ Grant Shapps (Guardian, 11 FEB 24)
Defence secretary rejects idea of lowering security clearances for overseas recruits to boost inclusivity as ‘woke nonsense’

A review of diversity and inclusion policies at the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has been ordered to ensure that Britain’s ability to defend its borders isn’t impaired by what a cabinet minister described as “political correctness”.

The move follows reports that the army wants to relax security checks for overseas recruits to increase black, Asian and minority ethnic representation.

The 2023 British Army’s Race Action Plan, outlining measures to boost representation, describes security clearance vetting as being “the primary barrier to non-UK personnel gaining a commission in the army” and vows to “challenge SC (security clearance) requirements”, the Sunday Telegraph reported.

But it added the defence secretary, Grant Shapps, was “furious” about what was described as “woke nonsense” and had ordered the review, quoting him as saying that there would be no “lowering of security clearance requirements on my watch”.

“And no one should be offended by having religion as part of remembrance services. You don’t have to be Christian to appreciate and respect the history and traditions of the United Kingdom,” he added. . . . .

‘Woke culture has infiltrated’ British Army with resources ‘squandered to promote a political agenda’, says Grant Shapps (GB News, 12 FEB 24))

The army has become infiltrated by a “woke” and “extremist culture” the Defence Secretary has said, after he ordered a major review of diversity and inclusion policies within the military.

Grant Shapps instructed the Ministry of Defence to review its guidelines to ensure that Britain can defend its borders and isn’t hindered by “political correctness”. . . .

. . . “Time and resources are being squandered to promote a political agenda which is pitting individuals against each other, when what we need is a common set of values which delivers the military we need to defend us and our allies.

“This extremist culture has infiltrated public life over years and it is time for a proper shake-up, designed to refocus the military on its core mission – being a lethal fighting force.”

A source close to the Defence Secretary said: “He’s determined it is rooted out on his watch. He’s ready to go to battle on it…”

Meanwhile, fellow Cabinet minister Michael Gove said political correctness should not “impair our ability to defend our borders”. . . .