I'm sorry guys I was just reporting what one of my colleagues from another outlet had rushed to the telephone to tell me and what the BBC was initially reporting. I was not actually there because the press briefing was called too late for me to cancel what I was planning. But even if he said precisely what the MoD later claimed he was saying - and there are still those disputing that - it was scarcely 'dont be silly of course there will still be three services'. As I said very early on in this thread, and again today in the STimes, I think he was deliberately letting the idea be out there so that it could be rubbished by others as stupid. I'm told, though I havent seen it, that there is a clip around of him being asked immediately after the briefing by the BBC's Caroline Wyatt about the possibility of there only being two services and him very definitely not saying, no you misunderstood me that is not what I was saying.
The story was around all week and there is no doubt that there are people out there lobbying for it, not with my backing I might add!
Writing for the Telegraph is of course not an insult, it's what I used to do!