The Times newspaper is reporting that some 36,000 Gurkha soldiers and their families will be allowed to settle in the UK – after the government lost a legal fight over settlement rights.

Personally, I think this is a fantastic decision as people who are willing to serve in the British army have earned the right to settle in the UK. It’s not just a financial issue as the right of settlement is part of the “benefits package” for the soldiers, but also a moral issue.

If people are willing to die for British politics (and wars are always political), then they damn well should be allowed to live here as well.

This reminded me of the ongoing, and in my opinion, disgraceful treatment of Iraqi’s who helped the British army by serving as translators in that troubled country and now face a very real threat to their lives from insurgents as the British army withdraws from the country. I’ve written about the benefits to the UK of allowing them to settle here in the past.

Lets hope that there is a way found to challenge that decision in the courts and accord the Iraqi’s the same treatment as their Nepalese counter-parts.