Armed Forces Day

Jas Athwal Excerpts

Thursday 26th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Jas Athwal (Ilford South) (Lab)]

I thank the Minister for his opening remarks, and I thank colleagues across the Chamber for coming together to commemorate and celebrate the brave men and women who keep us safe.

Before I begin, I note that a Westminster Hall debate was due to take place at around the same time today on the RAF Photographic Reconnaissance Unit, whose intelligence-gathering work of taking a staggering 26 million photographs was vital to the war effort. These men, often unarmed, operated at extreme risk, with a tragic 48% fatality rate. Their bravery and sacrifice was instrumental to our victory. I hope to contribute to that debate when it takes place so that we can rightly honour their role in protecting our freedom.

On Armed Forces Day, I want to focus on the women and men currently protecting our country. Many colleagues have spoken about the uncertain global times that we face. These challenges serve only to sharpen our focus and strengthen our resolve to honour our armed forces.

I have previously shared with the House that while I grew up knowing that my grandfather and great-grandfather had served in the war, I rarely saw their contributions recognised. Armed Forces Day is about changing that. It is about raising the flag for all those on active duty, thanking them for their service, and honouring their decision to put themselves in harm’s way for the rest of us. I take this opportunity to thank the men and women of Ilford whose names are etched in Memorial Hall, which used to be the entrance to the maternity unit of King George hospital in Newbury Park. It is a wonderful idea that they gave their lives so that babies could be born in freedom.

Armed Forces Day is about recognising our armed forces who come from every walk of life and from diverse faiths and backgrounds. Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, Christians, black, white and Asian—each individual making an incredible contribution to our collective security. If we are serious about supporting our armed forces, we must do more than hold debates to observe commemorative days. We must improve the experience of those serving now, so I am proud of the Prime Minister’s announcement of increased funding today. Improved experience means supporting efforts to make the military more inclusive, more accessible and more responsive to the needs of its personnel.

Groups such as the Defence Sikh Network are doing just that by raising the voices of Sikhs in service and working to ensure that they can serve with dignity and authenticity. In 2022, the Defence Sikh Network spearheaded the introduction of a waterproof, tearproof, camouflage copy of the Nitnem Gutka—a sacred Sikh prayer book—for use in tactical environments. This initiative revived a tradition first seen in world war one, when Sikh soldiers who served under the British Indian Army carried their scriptures with them into battle. For many Sikhs, their decision to join the military is rooted in their faith—in the Sikh principle of protecting those more vulnerable than them. The introduction of these Gutke helped serving Sikhs to maintain the connection between their faith and their duty.

It was not always like that. What comes to mind is the story of a young Oxford graduate, Hardit Singh Malik, in 1916. He was denied entry into the British Royal Flying Corps; he was going to join the French, until his tutor intervened and got him a special dispensation. He flew with great distinction. He fought against the Red Baron and, coming back, survived for 40 miles at low altitude with two bullets in his leg, his plane being shot at more than 400 times. As he himself said,

“My pursuers just did not have the bullet with my name on it.”

These small but meaningful initiatives about the Gutka are made not just on Armed Forces Day but on ordinary days, demonstrating respect for those who serve. On Armed Forces Day, we commemorate the men and women whom we may not see daily—the ones behind the scenes who work tirelessly to keep us safe, like the people in the Plessey factory in Ilford in world war two. We honour those whose names are not always remembered, whose records are lost, like those of the men of the RAF Photographic Reconnaissance Unit, and we reaffirm our commitment to implementing real change. From larger-scale policy initiatives to smaller cultural initiatives, we must make our forces stronger and more inclusive.