Army faces training cuts as fuel bill rises by £500million

Soaring oil prices will increase the cost of fuelling Britain’s armed forces by £500 million this year, it emerged today.

Ministry of Defence projected fuel bills for 2008/09 show the expected total increasing by 20 per cent to £2.9billion, from just under £2.4 billion last year.

And with the armed forces budget set to increase by just 3 per cent this year, major cuts to training programmes, such as fighter plane exercises, would be inevitable, say experts.

Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Glen Torpy, is understood to have said RAF pilots would do more training in simulators this year because of the budget squeeze.

Shadow Defence Secretary Liam Fox, who revealed the information he gathered  from a parliamentary question, called for extra funding to cover this year's shortfall.

'It is essential that the Government do not take the easy option of cutting training, because that can only put our forces at risk when they go into combat,' Mr Fox told The Times.

He is expected to grill Defence Secretary Des Browne over the issue in the commons today.

The bulk of the extra cost - around two-thirds - is accounted for by operations overseas, including in Iraq and Afghanistan.

However, an MoD source claimed that because these campaigns are funded from a separate Treasury reserve, the fuel price increase therefore do not impact on the MoD's £34billion budget.

But other Government departments might be expected to take up the slack.

Chancellor Alistair Darling last week told Cabinet colleagues not to ask for further increases in their budgets during the current period of economic difficulty.

The MoD said that the extra cost will not affect its ability to deliver military capability at home or abroad.

A spoekesman said: ‘We estimate that around two-thirds of the increased fuel cost as a result of increasing prices is for overseas operations, and is therefore paid from the Treasury Reserve.

‘The remaining additional fuel costs are managed within the £34billion Defence programme and do not affect the MoD’s ability to deliver military capability, home or abroad.

‘In addition, the MoD is committed to making savings worth £2.7billion between 2008/09 and 2010/11.’

Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to make a statement to the House of Commons on Britain’s commitment in Iraq.

This may include indications of a possible timeframe for the withdrawal of troops - something which would considerably ease the burden of the military on Government finances.