THE Corps of the Royal Engineers are to be awarded the freedom of Medway.

The decision to bestow the accolade on troops based in the Towns was made by Medway Council at a special meeting.

It comes 55 years after the former Gillingham council first honoured them and 10 years since the launch of the new unitary authority that replaced it.

Councillors said they wanted to recognise the bravery of the young men and women putting their lives on the line at flash points around the globe, including Iraq and Afghanistan.

Council leader Cllr Rodney Chambers (Con) said: “Wherever there are British forces in the world, the Royal Engineers are there.

“They have had a long association with the Medway Towns.

“They have involved themselves in the local community, and many who have retired from the service have settled here.

Appreciation

“It is right and proper we

recognise how much we in Medway appreciate all that our servicemen and women do on our behalf.”

The mayor, Cllr Val Goulden, broke with tradition to speak during the debate, saying: “This is going to make a lot of people very happy, including me.

“My late dad was a Royal Engineer and he would have been very, very thrilled by this.”

The council’s oldest member, Cllr Dickie Andrews (Con), told of his memories of the Sappers when he was a boy between the World Wars.

Cllr Paul Harriott (Lab), a former Sapper, wore the Royal Engineers tie when he spoke.

He said: “This is a well-deserved honour we should bestow on them. They are soldiers first and tradesmen second.”

He reminded the packed council chamber that Gordon of Khartoum, Lord Kitchener and the RAF’s first Victoria Cross holder, Major James McCudden, were all Medway REs.

The Sappers based at Medway were also the first team to win the FA Cup, designed the three basins at the former Royal Navy Dockyard, and were closely involved in clearing bombs in Northern Ireland.

Cllr Geoff Juby (Lib) said: “We must not forget the past history, but we must also realise what they are doing for us today.”