Labour's fiercest critic on Afghan war gets Tory job

(PA)

Sir Richard Dannatt, the former head of the Army who has criticised the Government over its tactics in Afghanistan, is to become a Tory adviser on defence policy.

The former Chief of the General Staff will be given a seat in the House of Lords, paving the way for him to become a junior defence minister in a future Conservative government. The appointment will anger Downing Street, coming just days after the former Army chief attacked the Government's Afghanistan policy, claiming his comments were not party political.

Sources at No 10 played down the importance of the appointment last night, suggesting that General Dannatt's position with the Tories had "undermined his credibility". He has been engaged in a diplomatic row with the Government since admitting this week that the Prime Minister had turned down his request for 2,000 more troops for the Afghanistan campaign.

David Cameron told the BBC yesterday: "I think he's a man of great talent and ability; he's been a great public servant and I think he's got more to give."

However, what should have been a major coup soon backfired after Chris Grayling, the shadow Home Secretary, appeared to suggest the appointment was a "political gimmick". Mistakenly thinking General Dannatt had been appointed merely to advise the Government, he added: "We've seen too many appointments of these external people."

The gaffe was seized upon by Alan Johnson, the Home Secretary. "Chris Grayling is so keen to do Britain down, he'll attack anything – including his own party," he said.

General Dannatt yesterday accused the Government of attempting to damage his reputation after "losing the argument" on troop numbers. He also suggested that Bob Ainsworth, the Defence Secretary, did not "call the shots" on some defence decisions.

Liam Fox, the shadow Defence Secretary, has urged his party not to give in to political pressure and announce cuts to defence projects ahead of a strategic review of procurement spending. He said a future government could not "continue with ad hoc decisions being made and long-term procurement programmes being effected by the need for short-term acquisition".

He admitted he would come under pressure to spell out some specific cuts in his budget. "It is difficult, and I don't deny that, to maintain the discipline when you would love to say that this programme will go ahead or I'm in favour of it. But it has to be part of a process."