UKIP
21-05-2009, 03:21 PM
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8060607.stm
All Gurkha veterans who retired before 1997 with at least four years' service will be allowed to settle in the UK, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has said. Ms Smith told MPs she was "proud to offer this country's welcome to all who have served in the brigade of Gurkhas".
It comes after a high-profile campaign by Joanna Lumley and other supporters of Gurkha rights - and an embarrassing Commons defeat for the government.
Some 36,000 Gurkhas who left before 1997 had been denied UK residency.
Ms Lumley, the actress who has been the public face of the campaign on behalf of the Gurkhas, said: "This is the welcome we have always longed to give."
She called Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who she had met earlier, a "brave man who has made today a brave decision on behalf of the bravest of the brave".
Gurkhas, who are recruited from Nepal, have been part of the British Army for almost 200 years.
About time, proud men and fought for our country/served in our military have a right to settle in this country. Shame on the government for fighting so long against their cause when it is better than most immigrants cases to settle here and Joanna Lumley, what an amazing woman fighting for them. :)
All Gurkha veterans who retired before 1997 with at least four years' service will be allowed to settle in the UK, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has said. Ms Smith told MPs she was "proud to offer this country's welcome to all who have served in the brigade of Gurkhas".
It comes after a high-profile campaign by Joanna Lumley and other supporters of Gurkha rights - and an embarrassing Commons defeat for the government.
Some 36,000 Gurkhas who left before 1997 had been denied UK residency.
Ms Lumley, the actress who has been the public face of the campaign on behalf of the Gurkhas, said: "This is the welcome we have always longed to give."
She called Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who she had met earlier, a "brave man who has made today a brave decision on behalf of the bravest of the brave".
Gurkhas, who are recruited from Nepal, have been part of the British Army for almost 200 years.
About time, proud men and fought for our country/served in our military have a right to settle in this country. Shame on the government for fighting so long against their cause when it is better than most immigrants cases to settle here and Joanna Lumley, what an amazing woman fighting for them. :)