Former SAS commander announced as new head of the Army
2 min read
Lieutenant General Mark Carleton-Smith will take over the army’s top job in June, Gavin Williamson has announced.
The former SAS chief, who will be promoted to the rank of General ahead of his new appointment, commanded the special forces regiment during the hunt for Osama Bin Laden in 2002.
The Old Etonian then went on to serve as Director Special Forces, heading up all of the UK’s elite secret units.
A senior military source told The Sun: “Mark caught No10’s eye when he played a leading role overseeing the counter Daesh operations, and was particularly impressive during the recent Syria strikes. He has been there and done that with all his SAS experience, and is also a very good bloke and popular with the blokes.”
Carelton-Smith was hotly-tipped to take over the £180,000 a year role from General Carter after he was promoted to Chief of the Defence Staff.
The Defence Secretary hailed the appointment as the next step in a modernisation programme to ensure the Army is ready to “deal with intensifying threats".
“I’m delighted to offer my congratulations to Lieutenant General Carleton-Smith on his appointment of Chief of the General Staff," Mr Williamson said.
“Lt Gen Carleton-Smith has played a leading role in many of our recent operations at home and abroad, including our campaign to defeat Daesh in Iraq and Syria, our support to British Overseas Territories affected by Hurricane Irma and the military’s support to areas badly affected by the snow earlier this year.
“I have no doubt that Lt Gen Carleton-Smith will be an outstanding leader of the Army at this crucial period, as we look to strengthen and further modernise the Army to deal with intensifying threats.”
PoliticsHome Newsletters
PoliticsHome provides the most comprehensive coverage of UK politics anywhere on the web, offering high quality original reporting and analysis: Subscribe
