Army chief quits over Afghanistan
By Ian Dunt
The top UK bomb-disposal officer is stepping down, it has been confirmed.
Media reports indicate Colonel Bob Seddon, principal ammunition technical officer (Pato), stepped down over concerns about training.
The Sun reported this morning that Col Seddon had been concerned about the pressures on troops in Afghanistan.
“I am very concerned over the pressures they are facing in Afghanistan,” he was quoted as saying in a documentary to be screened on the BBC tonight.
“We’ve broadened our training and selection but it will take time before these measures come into play. The existing cohort are going to be under pressure,” Col Seddon said.
The potentially damaging move threatens to regurgitate the arguments over equipment shortages, funding and training which beset Gordon Brown’s administration.
“We can confirm that the current Pato has resigned and will leave his post and the army in January next year,” an army spokesman said.
“The army remains committed to the counter IED (improvised explosive devise) effort which is the number one priority in Afghanistan.”
