keywords: troops allies whilst staunch british
text: The tide is turning... Whilst some may claim that the British are staunch allies of the United States (depite being having clearly different agendas on the World Stage), the recent request made to Britain for additional support, namely 600 troops from Black Watch to be moved North to Baghdad to help out the 130,000 US troops who want to move upto Fallujah, is being met by the British Parliament with what we might politely call some   hostility. As the Honourable member for Morecambe and Lunesdale (yes, it is as grim as it sounds), Geraldine Smith asks:    "I'm concerned about the timing. We've been asked by the Americans two weeks before their election to cover for their troops. Is this a ploy to allow Bush not to send more troops? If we made a decision to send troops tomorrow, it looks like we are stepping in to help out the President."