A TORY MP has withdrawn his support for the Prime Minister over historic army prosecutions.
Plymouth MP and former army officer Johnny Mercer will now only vote with the Government on Brexit legislation, he said in a letter to Theresa May.
Mercer said he had made the decision over the historical prosecution of servicemen and women over alleged actions in Northern Ireland.
He said he was withdrawing his support until the Government took “some clear and concrete steps to end this abhorrent process”.
In the letter, he wrote: “You will not meet a serving soldier who does not believe that those who break the law on operations should be prosecuted.
“But these repeated investigations with no new evidence, the macabre spectacle of elderly veterans being dragged back to Northern Ireland to face those who seek to re-fight that conflict through other means, without any protection from a government who sent them almost 50 years ago, is too much.
“It appears that my values and ethos may be slowly, but very firmly, separating from a party I joined in 2015.
“I will not be voting for any of the Government’s legislative actions outside of Brexit until legislation is brought forward to protect veterans from being repeatedly prosecuted for historical allegations.”
Six former soldiers are facing prosecution over killings during the Troubles, though not all the charges are murder.
Mercer attracted attention last October when he described May’s government as a “s*** show”, and suggested his views were no longer aligned with the party.
The Tory MP won his seat with an 11.1% majority in 2017 – up from a 2.4% majority in 2015.
He is seen within the party as one of its rising stars and a future leadership candidate.
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