THE government has decided to upgrade the RAF's ageing Tornado warplanes rather than renting American fighters as a stop-gap measure while the new European Fighter Aircraft is ready.
That is the right decision. It lifts the threat to thousands of jobs in Lancashire's aerospace industry and retains vital skills in this country.
A lease deal with the US would have exported work to America and shot down our aircraft industry.
And that the government even could have contemplated that is as shocking as John Major's personal intervention to scupper the proposal is correct.
But where did our Union Jack-waving defence supremo Michael Portillo get this buy-foreign notion from?
An unelected "special adviser" with right-wing credentials that make most Tories look wet, we hear.
Yet what right has this shadowy meddler to threaten the livelihoods of thousands of workers? He wants shooting down.
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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