Thousands turn out in support of armed forces

Thousands of people have attended the National Armed Forces day in Cleethorpes in support of military personnel.

The defence secretary, John Healey, thanked men and women from across all three military services for "keeping us and our allies safe".

The three-day event in Cleethorpes started on Friday and continues on Sunday, and has been held in the resort since 2011.

Two hundred other events are taking place across the country to mark Armed Forces day.

Speaking from the event Healey said: "What you do keeps our country secure at home. What you do makes us strong abroad. And I hope you see the strength of the support here in Cleethorpes for national Armed Forces Day and in all the other Armed Forces Day events across the country as a sign that the British public is behind you.

"We thank you, and we recognize that."

The event in Cleethorpes, which is planned by a group of volunteers, included a military parade, a display by the Red Arrows and Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

Huge crowds lined the streets as the parade passed, accompanied by music from The Band of the Coldstream Guards, who are famous for performing during Changing the Guard and at Trooping The Colour.

Armed Forces personnel from the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force all took part in the procession.

The defence secretary said he was concerned the distance between military personnel and the rest of society might be growing as a result of the diminishing "national service" generation.

"Fewer and fewer families have that sort of personal connection", he said.

"But what you can see today here is that whether they have that personal connection or not, in places like Lincolnshire, in Yorkshire, in Cleethorpes in particular, that sense of pride, that sense of support, is really strong."

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