I am the mother of a serving soldier, both myself and my husband are extremely proud of our son, his chosen career and also the British Forces as a whole. What I am ASHAMED of is our government and mainly thePM Mr Blair. They allowed us to go into this "war" on the back of a bunch of trumped up lies, everyone now knows they were lies. So know we are there "to help build a democracy". Well while Mr Blair and the rest play at that!!. What has happened to OUR DEMOCRACY in any poll done recently the British people want our troops out now 2/3rds in favour. But no Blair will not lose face or go against buddy Bush, he would rather lose a few soldiers here and there. He SUNS himself our SONS die !!!!. How can we expect the Iraqi people to understand democracy when our government doesn't understand it. So far I have been lucky my son returned safe and sound from his tour of Iraq, he would willingly go back, he is a good soldier he will do what his commanders order him to. But Blair is ruining what most British people are proud of, our Army is admired and respected around the world, but they are being overstretched and they are illegally invading another country. How will people respect us after this fiasco? . The cost is about 2.8 million a week, what difference that money could make to schools, hospitals and pensions. Our defence budget has been cut from 34.6 billion in 1999/2000 to 31 billion in 2004/2005, yet we are stretched further than ever with Iraq and now Afganistan!!!!. It is our forces that will suffer and more will leave because of this we are 29,000 troops less now than when labour came to power. Mr Blair these are human beings not TOY SOLDIERS for you to play your own private war with, that is why they are leaving in their hundreds, they will DEFEND us and our country but will not be used by an egotistical lunatic. SHAME on you and this government bring the troops home now, admit we are making things worse for the normal people of Iraq, their New PM Mr Maliki has asked for us to be OUT of 16 of the 18 provinces (that will mean all British held places). BUT Mr Blair has said "The Iraqis will not be remotely ready...????..Mr Blair you cannot run your OWN country, please let the man run HIS OWN.....

A mother of a serving soldier