WITH this country in the grip of a severe austerity crisis, with even very necessary rural bus, public toilet and library cuts, (let alone tax credit cancellations), can we really afford the new Iraq officers’ military training academy known now in military circles as ‘Sandhurst in the sand’ costing UK tax payers £64 million?

This new colossal expenditure has not to my knowledge been notified either in the national papers or on television.

But the UK Forces TV channel runs the complete story on how it is now open for business, after running two years late.

Are we still trying to fool the world that we are still a superpower with plenty of cash in a bottomless pot?

I would suggest that someone in No. 10 needs to ‘get real’ with overseas expenditure ASAP, and start saving a little more for local home requirements.

NEV COOPER Bottlesford