The Gurkha Satyagraha campaign has been fighting for the rights of ex-servicemen and their families for many years. I supported the campaign to give ex-Gurkhas the right to settle in the UK. I believe that service in our armed forces demonstrates a strong commitment to the values of our country, and if you are prepared to die for Britain, you should also have the right to live in Britain. Whilst this argument over the right to residency was won five years ago, there remain a number of outstanding areas of grievance over the rights of ex-Gurkha servicemen, and particularly for those who retired before the Gurkhas moved their home barracks from Hong Kong to the UK in 1997.
Before Christmas I was the first parliamentarian to visit Gyanraj Raj during his hunger strike in Whitehall. His brave protest was in support of the campaign to give ex-Gurkha servicemen rights equal to those of other ex-servicemen of the British armed forces; with particular regard to pension rights and other entitlements. I asked the Defence Secretary, Philip Hammond is he would look into this case, and was pleased that the government then agreed that it would formally consider the results of a parliamentary inquiry into Gurkha welfare, which is being led by the All Party Parliamentary Group for Gurkha Welfare. As a member of this parliamentary group I will be participating fully in the inquiry.
Last week, I met with former Folkestone Town councillor, Dhan Gurung, and members of the Gurkha Satyagraha campaign to discuss the inquiry with them and to receive their written evidence. I have submitted this evidence to the parliamentary inquiry and it is expected that the report and its recommendations will have been submitted to the government by the end of March. The Government has made it clear that it will give careful consideration to the results of the inquiry, with an open mind. This is the best opportunity yet to resolve these important remaining issues relating to the welfare of ex-Gurkhas and their families.
On Friday last week I visited start-up firms at the new business centre in Tontine Street; the Workshop. It is great to see this fantastic facility buzzing with activity, and new businesses getting ready to move in. One area of the building, called The Factory Floor, offers incubator space for start-ups where they can rent just as much desk space as they need, and enjoy the support facilities offered by the building. This is a great way for start-up firms to get going at low cost and also to network with other people who can help their business grow. A number of the firms who have started out in this way on the ‘Factory Floor’ are now ready to expand and move into more formal office space. They would all agree that the experience of working out of this space has been very beneficial to the development of their businesses, and certainly better than working from home. You can find out more about what the Workshop and Factory Floor has to offer, by visiting its website www.theworkshopfolkestone.co.uk.