Commander sees red over armour; Parked vehicles not on front line.

Byline: Joe Churcher

THE former commander of the British forces in Afghanistan has attacked the Ministry of Defence for leaving heavily-armoured vehicles "parked up doing nothing" at a base in England.

Col Richard Kemp described as "extraordinary" pictures published yesterday that show large numbers of vehicles such as Ridgbacks, Bulldogs and Mastiffs at a facility in Gloucestershire.

His outburst came after the death of another British soldier caught by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan's Helmand province.

The names of Paras killed when their Jackal armoured vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb were also revealed yesterday. A fourth member of the patrol injured in Thursday's blast remained in critical condition.

The Ministry of Defence insisted yesterday that the equipment at the Defence Storage and Distribution Agency site was to be still fitted with armour, radios and to undergo testing.

But Col Kemp said the numbers of vehicles involved were "disproportionate" and questioned why the potentially life-saving hardware was not at the front line.

"We are continuously told, by people from the Chief of the General Staff downward, that there is a shortage of the right vehicles in theatre," he was quoted as telling a Sunday newspaper.

"It seems extraordinary that they should be sitting here parked up doing nothing whatsoever when they are needed out there.

"If you consider that the Viking in which Colonel (Rupert) Thorneloe was killed is a less-protected vehicle than a Mastiff or a Ridgback, you have to ask why they are still running around in Vikings when they could be using the other types of vehicles that are parked up in Gloucestershire," he said. Col Thorneloe was the highest-ranking British officer to be killed in action in more than 25 years.

An MoD spokesman said: "It is completely unsustainable to have all our vehicles in theatre at once. It is imperative that if the mission is to be sustainable, we need to have a fleet in theatre and in the United Kingdom for training, maintenance and critical upgrades.

"We have now spent over pounds 1bn on new vehicles for operations, with a total of 1,200 new vehicles supporting operations that have been ordered over the last two years.

"Vehicles are delivered to the Defence Storage and Distribution Agency by industry where they are fitted with radios and armour and checked to ensure they are the correct standard to satisfy the troops on the ground. They are then either distributed to theatre, used for training or domestic purposes in the UK or held in reserve capability. Vehicles also go through maintenance at DSDA."

The soldiers who died on Thursday were named as Cpl Kevin Mulligan, 26, who was the father of an unborn child, L/Cpl Dale Hopkins, 23, and Pte Kyle Adams, 21. They were working with special forces when their vehicle was struck by the roadside bomb and then came under small arms fire.

Defence secretary Bob Ainsworth said: "These men were highly gifted individuals at the forefront of their profession and their loss is a heavy blow."

The total number of British troops who have died in Afghanistan since operations began in October 2001 now stands at 196.