A little bit of Justice for Gurhka's

[Reliant121]

BBC News

All Gurkha veterans who retired before 1997 with at least four years' service will be allowed to settle in the UK, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has said.

Ms Smith told MPs she was "proud to offer this country's welcome to all who have served in the brigade of Gurkhas".

It comes after a high-profile campaign by Joanna Lumley and other supporters of Gurkha rights - and an embarrassing Commons defeat for the government.

Some 36,000 Gurkhas who left before 1997 had been denied UK residency.

Ms Lumley, the actress who has been the public face of the campaign on behalf of the Gurkhas, said: "This is the welcome we have always longed to give."

She called Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who she had met earlier, a "brave man who has made today a brave decision on behalf of the bravest of the brave".

Gurkhas, who are recruited from Nepal, have been part of the British Army for almost 200 years.

'Sacrifice and distinction'

Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling said the U-turn by the government was a "great victory for a well-run campaign, that has publicly embarrassed ministers".

He said it was a shame that the government had had to be dragged "kicking and screaming" to the decision.

Ms Smith's statement was greeted by cheers from MPs. The prime minister and the minister have finally listened to the will of this House and the will of the British public

She told the Commons: "I'm delighted that we have now been able to agree - across government, across the House and with the Gurkhas' representatives - new settlement rights that all those who have served us so well, so highly deserve."

Under the measures outlined in the House, Gurkhas will be allowed to settle in the UK with their spouses and dependent children under 18.

Ms Smith said she expected to welcome 10,000 to 15,000 applications from Gurkhas over the next two years.

She added that some 1,400 outstanding applications for settlement currently before the UK Border Agency would be processed on the basis of the new policy "as a matter of urgency" before 11 June.

Ms Smith added that the Gurkhas had served the UK "with great courage, sacrifice and distinction and they continue to make a vital and valued contribution to our operations around the world".

Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, welcomed the statement.

"The prime minister and the minister have finally listened to the will of this House and the will of the British public," he said.

Keith Vaz, chairman of the home affairs select committee, said it was a "historic" day for British democracy and said 21 May will be "remembered as Gurkha Rights Day".

[Captain Seafort]

Ms Smith told MPs she was "proud to offer this country's welcome to all who have served in the brigade of Gurkhas".

Good to see that Labour's traditional standards for honesty are being upheld.

She told the Commons: "I'm delighted that we have now been able to agree - across government, across the House and with the Gurkhas' representatives - new settlement rights that all those who have served us so well, so highly deserve."

Translation: "we've finally been forced to follow the morally obvious path having exhausted all other options".

[Mikey]

Well, whoever claims undeserved credit for this... it's damn nice to see it happen.

[Sionnach Glic]

Good to hear. This has taken far too long as it is.

[Aaron]

Good, it's about time.

[thelordharry]

And it's all thanks to the milf, here

[Mikey]

K, I'll bite. What does AbFab have to do with Gurhka settlement rights?

[Captain Seafort]

Because Joanna Lumley has been playing a major role in the campaign, and doing so very effectively.

[Mikey]

Ah. I guess I would've known that if I were more tied in to British political ads.

[Captain Seafort]

Ads?

[Mikey]

Ads?

Sorry - "advertisments" or "commercials." I'm making an assumption of similarity - over here, mass media outlet advertising is the major method of campaigning.

[Captain Seafort]

Not here, at least not from organisations other than the major political parties and even then only during election campaigns. Campaigns like the Gurkha one are mainly done either through media interviews or by pestering MPs.

[Sionnach Glic]

Political ads on TV seem to be mostly an American phenomenon in my experience.

[Reliant121]

She had a pretty high profile campaign on various news channels and media interviews, which made the Government decision a public spectacle. Incidentally, that was probably the final push that made the government reverse its decision.

[Captain Seafort]

In other words, Brown didn't fancy getting a live bollocking on national television.