‘Every veteran suicide is a tragedy’ Minister of State for Veterans' Affairs wants the military to feel ‘best version of themselves'

Veterans Minister Johnny Mercer has said that "every veteran suicide is a tragedy" after being asked if he was "embarrassed" by the latest figures that showed that 60 per cent of veterans found it difficult to ask for help.

Mercer explained that he is "proud" of the progress in the past 20 years with people "coming forward and asking for help".

He said: "It's not an embarrassment. It's not where I want it to be.

"We work night and day in this place to try and make it easier to understand, easier to access, better joined up, so you don't have to go around and tell your story several times."

He added: "I think when I started a long time ago now it was a different concept coming forward and asking for help with your mental health than it is today.

"And we should be proud of that. The way it's changed both within the military but also outside the military.

"There is always more to do. And no one's going to sit there and say, look, we're completely happy with this progress.

"We're not going to sit on our laurels and say we're not going to do anymore.

"Every single veteran suicide is a tragedy, not only for the individual, for their family, but also us as a nation.

"People who leave the military, I want them to go away from that, completely boosted by their time in the military and the best version themselves.

"I don't want them going away from that in the states that some of them do.

"So we will keep driving down this hole until everybody knows about courage.

"Everyone knows that the programs that are there, they do work, you can get better and life can get back to normal."

He also discussed how the Junior Doctors strikes have affected veterans in England.

​He said: "This doctor's strike at the hardest time of year is something I profoundly disagree with.

"The Prime Minister has made clear his mission on inflation.

"We need to get this sorted out because actually when people aren't on strike those waiting lists are coming down and that's what people want to see from their Government."

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WATCH: 'I did absolutely nothing wrong' Trump vows to secure America's borders and 'free elections'

Former president of the United States Donald Trump has said that he did "absolutely nothing wrong" after his court appearance.

Trump's lawyers argued his criminal prosecution over attempts to overturn the 2020 election should be scrapped and he should be "immune" as he was president at time.

The ex-president also vowed to return to office and said that America should be "respected" like it "was 3 years ago."

You can watch the full news conference above

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Joe Biden speech hijacked by Palestine protesters as President heckled by activists

Pro-Palestinian protesters have interrupted President Joe Biden during his second campaign speech of the year.

Biden, 81, was addressing the audience at the Mother Emmanuel Church in South Carolina, when the protesters drowned him out with their calls for a ceasefire.

Biden then responded: "I understand they're passionate and I've been quietly working with the Israeli government to significantly reduce & get out of Gaza."

The President was speaking at the historically Black church in Charleston, where nine people were killed after a gunman opened fire on a Bible study group in 2015.

"If you really care about the lives lost here you should honor the lives lost and call for a ceasefire in Palestine," one protester yelled.

This triggered a repeated chant of "ceasefire now" before the protesters were then removed from the room.

As he restarted his speech, the President was interrupted again, this time by a supportive audience member.

He told the 81-year-old that he is a "good man", which was met with applause.

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The President's supporters then began chanting "four more years" in response.

The outburst at the speech comes after months of protests calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

The US President has stopped short of calling for a ceasefire, something that has outraged many.

Biden also attacked Trump's role during the January 6 Capitol attacks, which occurred three years ago to the day.

He called the 45th President a "loser" for failing to accept his loss in the 2020 election.

"There’s one thing they don’t have. They don’t have respect for the 81 million people who voted the other way, voted for my candidacy,” Biden said of Trump and his allies.

"In their world, these Americans, including you, don’t count, but that’s not the real world. That’s not democracy. That’s not America,” he said. Biden went on to argue that in the country, “losers are taught to concede when they lose. He’s a loser."

Biden also slammed Trump and his supporters' denialism of the 2020 election results was the "second Lost Cause" - the first Lost Cause being the Confederates' belief that their efforts in the American Civil War were heroic, and not just based on slavery.

"Now, we’re living in an era of a second Lost Cause,” Biden said.

"Once again, for some of this country trying, trying to turn a loss into a lie, a lie which, if allowed live, once again, (will) bring terrible damage to this country at this time. A lie that’s about the 2020 election."

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Three quarters of Britons think country in a worse state now than when Tories came to power

Three quarters of Britons think the UK is in a worse state now than when the Conservative Party came to power in 2010, according to a YouGov poll.

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Government is not serious about tackling illegal migration, claims Labour’s Bridget Phillipson

The Government is not serious about stopping illegal immigration and its Rwanda plan is just a gimmick, Labour’s shadow education secretary has claimed.

Bridget Phillipson told GB News: “It's not actually about getting serious about dealing with the cross border smuggling gangs, about making sure we are effective at tackling that, that we're cutting the backlog when it comes to asylum cases and stopping the inappropriate use of hotels.

“That's what Labour's plan involves, getting tough on the gangs and making sure we're clearing that backlog.

“It's far from clear whether the plan will have sent anyone to Rwanda because we've sent more Home Secretaries to Rwanda than we have asylum seekers.”

In a discussion with Camilla Tominey, she continued: “If it does, even if Rwanda were to be an effective intervention, even if it were to be effective, you're talking about between 100 to 200 asylum seekers. It's 1% of the backlog of claims that we're facing at the moment.

“It's just not the answer. It's a gimmick. What we need to have as a serious plan, as Labour has set out, around tackling those cases, that huge backlog of cases and ending the use of inappropriate accommodation such as hotels.”

On the resignation of Tory MP Chris Skidmore, she said: “I'm not especially interested in that, no. To be honest, I'm more interested in winning the by-election in Kingswood that they're about to have.

“That's what I'm most interested in. And we'll be fighting a really tough campaign there."

WATCH ABOVE.

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Labour reveals plans to tackle 'generational' school absences challenge

Labour says it will introduce additional mental health counsellors to secondary schools as part of its plans to tackle rising pupil absences.

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The Week... The election campaign goes up a gear

Two of Westminster's best-connected journalists, Sky News's Sam Coates and Politico's Jack Blanchard, guide us through their predictions of how British politics will play out over the next seven days.

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'Wake up and smell the flood water': Govt urged to do more amid warning more homes will be hit

The government is being urged to "wake up and smell the flood water" following Storm Henk - amid fears that climate change is making extreme weather events more common.

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Sunak says he'll cut taxes before and after election - by curbing welfare and govt spending

Rishi Sunak has vowed to cut taxes before and after the general election - but has warned they will be funded by curbing benefits and government spending.

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PM should be 'honest' about his Rwanda plan doubts, Labour says

Labour says Rishi Sunak should be "honest" with the public by publishing documents which appear to show he had doubts about the Rwanda scheme to stop small boats from crossing the Channel.

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Sunak left red-faced over Rwanda leaks after trying to go on the offensive

Boris Johnson's demise was brought about by the three Ps: Paterson, partygate and Pincher.

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'SEVERE pressure' as Humza Yousaf forced to BEG for SNP donations as money drys up, says Dean Thomson

Dean Thomson reacts as Humza Yousaf has been forced to beg separatist supporters for more money after Scottish National Party donations started to dry up.

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Tory high command will be furious as 'rebel with cause' quits early

A by-election in Kingswood, a suburban seat to the east of Bristol, is not a very attractive proposition for any aspiring candidates.

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Rishi Sunak loses ANOTHER Tory MP as ex-minister rages at PM's climate plans

A former Tory minister has said he will resign over new legislation "that promotes the production of new oil and gas".

Chris Skidmore, who signed the UK's Net Zero pledge into law, announced today that he would withdraw the Conservative whip and stand down as an MP.

By stepping down from his role, a by-election will be triggered in his Kingswood seat in Gloucestershire.

The ex-energy minister has stepped ahead of a vote on a bill on Monday that plans to issue more oil and gas licences.

The Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill, which Skidmore objects to, would guarantee annual licensing rounds.

"The bill would in effect allow more frequent new oil and gas licences and the increased production of new fossil fuels in the North Sea," he said on social media as he announced his resignation.

"I can no longer stand by. The climate crisis that we face is too important to politicise or to ignore."

Skidmore warned MPs who vote for the legislation that the future will judge them "harshly".

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He said: "It is a tragedy that the UK has been allowed to lose its climate leadership, at a time when our businesses, industries, universities and civil society organisations are providing first-class leadership and expertise to so many across the world, inspiring change for the better.

"I cannot vote for the bill next week. The future will judge harshly those that do. At a time when we should be committing to more climate action, we simply do not have any more time to waste promoting the future production of fossil fuels that is the ultimate cause of the environmental crisis that we are facing."

Skidmore said he would resign the Conservative whip to make him an independent "as soon as possible".

He confirmed that he would quit "next week when Parliament is back", as the Commons is still on its Christmas recess until next week.

He has previously warned that the bill will stop climate-conscious Britons from voting for the Tories at the next general election.

Skidmore wants the Government to focus on transitioning to cleaner energy practices in its place.

He has been an MP since the Conservatives came to power in 2010.

Under Boris Johnson, he served as energy minister and has been a major Conservative voice on climate issues.

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Former energy minister to quit as Tory MP in protest over new oil and gas licences

A former energy minister has said he will quit as a Conservative MP over new legislation "that promotes the production of new oil and gas".

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