Mike comments on his visit to Iraq where he met servicemen and women from Hertfordshire.

Meeting many of the British Army's youngest troops in the middle of the desert, thousands of miles from their families and loved ones, was one of the most defining moments of my visit to Iraq and it was rewarding to talk to several service men and women from Hertfordshire. We have every right to believe that we have the best armed forces in the world but actually seeing just how professional they really are is a privilege that no politician can refuse.

That’s why when I was asked if I would like to go on a fact finding trip to visit our service men and women in Basra and Baghdad, I was proud to accept, but it was only during my security briefing at the Foreign Office that it became all too obvious just how dangerous Iraq still is for our troops. Whilst there, I was issued with my personal body armour, a privilege not granted to all our troops when they were sent into battle.

Arriving at the military base just outside Basra on board a Royal Air Force Puma helicopter with their loaded GPMG machine guns, hanging out the doors, was a frightening experience. The pilots told us they have to fly in such an aerobatic way (they call it tactical) because of the threat of ground to air fire. Looking across the desert as we landed all I could see were rows and rows of tents, the home of the British Army in the south of Iraq, and in particular the Home of the Scots Guards.

This regiment is one of our elite and as a former Grenadier Guardsman myself, I felt honoured to be with them. After a briefing from their Commanding Officer it was off to see their armoured equipment. Although they are infantry they use the Warrior armoured vehicles and were all too happy to show just how useful these tank like machines can be in the desert.

Even though we met many senior officers, it was my meeting with the very young Guardsmen that was probably most rewarding. Each soldier has to be at least 18 to serve in Iraq and though many seemed very young, I was hugely impressed by their determination to do the job they had trained for, and to leave Iraq a safer place. Yes, they had the desert with all the sand that blows in with the wind every day and the tents which are not the sort of accommodation that you expect brave lads and lasses to be provided with in a 21st century military campaign, but they reserved their biggest and most vocal criticism for the NAAFI. The NAAFI is the soldier’s shop. It is there to serve the needs of our troops all over the world but it seems that in Iraq the NAAFI has a very limited selection of goods to sell. What they do have is vastly over priced and leaves our troops feeling “ripped off”. I promised that I would raise this disgraceful matter when I returned to the UK. I have today written to the PM asking why prices in NAAFI shops in conflict areas have prices massively higher than in UK.

On arrival in Baghdad the whole atmosphere changed. There are car bombs, shooting and kidnappings most days and it wasn’t long before we witnessed just how dangerous it was even in the “Safe Zone”. A few minutes after we arrived at our accommodation, two four inch mortar shells landed a few hundred yards away after being fired over our building and later that night the whole building shook for several seconds. Our Royal Military Police body guards (who were fantastic) later told us that a car bomb had been detonated near a local check point.

What does hit home after a short time is the determination of everyone from the American Military (who have lost over 1500 troops in Iraq) to the Iraqi politicians to bring peace and democracy to Iraq. They are all desperately proud that the election was such a success and are determined to form a government that represents the whole country.

No matter whether your views were for or against the war in Iraq, we currently have thousands of regular and reservist troops serving and risking their lives there. I have seen and witnessed for myself just how dangerous it is for our brave and committed troops and we must never forget that they are serving there because we sent them and we must never leave them feeling used and abused.

Photo: Mike visits the troops in Iraq.