LABOUR should do more to support and thank British soldiers, delegates to the party conference were told yesterday.
Des Browne, the Defence Secretary, tacitly admitted that Labour had at times failed to acknowledge that the rank and file of the armed forces are in large part drawn from the working-class districts that are also the party's heartlands.
Meanwhile David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, spoke of the "scars" Labour bears because of the war in Iraq, and pledged a more humble foreign policy.
Mr Browne used his address to the Labour gathering in Bournemouth to respond to pressure over the treatment of British service personnel.
In recent weeks, military campaigners, including the Royal British Legion, have been raising the "military covenant", the tacit contract between a country and its armed forces that many feel has been broken by falling defence spending and increasing operational commitments in Afghanistan and Iraq.
And last week, General Sir Richard Dannatt, the chief of the general staff, warned that a "dismissive and indifferent" attitude among the public risks undermining armed forces' morale.
Since the invasion of Iraq in 2003, Labour conferences have frequently seen protests and speeches opposing British military operations.
Mr Browne told Labour members that the troops whose actions they so often deplored deserved more support.
"These are people from the heart of our communities, coming from our estates. They use the same schools as us, the same health service. They are looking after us. We need to look after them," he said. "They risk their lives for our security. They never let us down."
Accepting a recent parliamentary watchdog's finding that some army accommodation is a "disgrace", Mr Browne said he would spend an extra £80 million on improving housing for single soldiers.
He also confirmed that troops on frontline deployments will be exempted from council tax, a move the Conservatives dismissed as a gimmick.
Mr Browne called the British missions in Afghanistan "the noble cause of the 21st century", and insisted that the mission in Iraq is showing successes.
Mr Miliband struck a subtly different note, effectively admitting mistakes in the conduct of the war in Iraq as he spoke of "the successes, but also the scars, of ten years in government".
British forces in Iraq have now withdrawn to a single base outside Basra, and Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister, will next month tell MPs that a further phased withdrawal will take place over the winter.
Confirming the end of Tony Blair's interventionist foreign policy, Mr Miliband said Mr Brown's arrival as Prime Minister had brought in a "second wave" of British policy.
Promising more "humility", Mr Miliband said the time was now right to "learn the right lessons and move on to address the new issues".
• Neil Kinnock, the former Labour leader, was reduced to tears for a second day yesterday. Lord Kinnock, who wept on Monday after a tribute during Mr Brown's speech, shed more tears yesterday as Douglas Alexander, the Development Secretary, praised his work modernising Labour in the 1980s.
CONFERENCE DIARY
GORDON Brown was giving a briefing on the latest agricultural disease to blight the British countryside on Sunday night. The PM had boned up on his subject, telling his inner circle that bluetongue was a disease that was carried to the UK by Belgian midges.
A puzzled look crossed the face of American pollster Bob Shrum, who asked: "Who are these foreign midgets coming to your shores and spreading disease?"
MINISTERS who had been complaining about the seven-minute limit imposed on their speeches (Gordon Brown's always used to rival the PM's in length when he was chancellor) were thankful after hearing David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary.
But there was at least one fan in the wings: his special adviser, Sarah Schaeffer, was applauding furiously.
THE Prime Minister has hinted that he will reverse liberal licensing hours if binge drinking continues to be a problem. Maybe he should start by cleaning up the conference first. It would be interesting to observe which partygoers have worse hangovers this morning: those who attended the Irish Embassy do, or those who opted for the Cuba Solidarity Society's Havana rum reception.
• Coming up today: Gordon Brown is the guest star in a question- and-answer session.
