Guest Troy Posted 25 March , 2005 Share Posted 25 March , 2005 Hi Len You'll see I posted the same thing earlier in the week and got told off. Apparently its incorrect. Like you, Ill wait for an official announcement now. Keeping my fingers crossed that they survive and are available for future generations anyway, whoever has them. J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Buck Posted 31 March , 2005 Share Posted 31 March , 2005 This has now reached the European Parliament. I had a call this morning asking for information on the current position and referred the caller to this thread and News on the WFA website. Brian Buck Norwich & Waveney Branch WFA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Essexboy68 Posted 1 April , 2005 Share Posted 1 April , 2005 (edited) Hello All, Glad to see that news is still coming in about the fate of the MICs. As "promised" in an earlier post, I have now personally approached the Lt Governor here, & he is now aware of the situation. Cheers Mark Edited 3 April , 2005 by Essexboy68 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Reed Posted 2 April , 2005 Share Posted 2 April , 2005 No one has forgotten any promises made to keep people updated on this issue; but negotiations of this nature take time. I trust people realise this. The current news is very good indeed, and the National Archives and Western Front Association will be making a public announcement shortly. I do not want to pre-empt what they say - and I again urge patience until this announcement is made. Forum members interest in the Medal Index Cards, public opinion, questions in parliament - and all the other measures people have taken - have all helped and I am sure everyone will be pleased with the outcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Essexboy68 Posted 3 April , 2005 Share Posted 3 April , 2005 Paul I hope you do not think I was commenting about kept informed. My post referred to a previous posting made when I had said I was approaching His Excellency, the Lt Governor, here on the Isle of Man. I have edited my posting (put a capital letter where it was erroneously in lower case) & hope this clears up any misunderstanding. I am well aware that these things take time & am very grateful to all who are taking part in the discussions to save this unique source of information. Cheers Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisharley9 Posted 17 April , 2005 Share Posted 17 April , 2005 Any more news anyone ? All The Best Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Reed Posted 17 April , 2005 Share Posted 17 April , 2005 Chris - we are waiting for the WFA to make an announcement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisharley9 Posted 17 April , 2005 Share Posted 17 April , 2005 Chris - we are waiting for the WFA to make an announcement. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Paul many thanks Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eviltaxman Posted 18 April , 2005 Share Posted 18 April , 2005 Before everyone starts to panic too much, I've had a reply back from my MP. She's sent me a letter from Geoff Hoon - the Minister of Defence - which clearly shows the state of play as at 5 April 2005. See below for scanned images (hopefully!) Les. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eviltaxman Posted 18 April , 2005 Share Posted 18 April , 2005 And part 2 ................. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greenwoodman Posted 18 April , 2005 Share Posted 18 April , 2005 The word from the WFA AGM was that the retention of the cards was looking promising, but discussions were continuing between MoD, NA and WFA to iron out the problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eviltaxman Posted 18 April , 2005 Share Posted 18 April , 2005 Fingers crossed! Les. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Reed Posted 13 May , 2005 Share Posted 13 May , 2005 So no-one accuses me of not keeping them informed of this issue, have a look at Tom Morgan's post elsewhere on the site which doesn't seem to have attracted the attention I thought it would: http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/i...showtopic=32165 The MICs are now safely in the hands of the WFA - but I hope people will realise it may take some time to make them publicly available. The WFA should be congratulated for this - they saved an important part of our nation's history. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_Hartley Posted 13 May , 2005 Share Posted 13 May , 2005 The WFA should be congratulated for this - they saved an important part of our nation's history. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Paul The announcement at my branch of the WFA last night, indicated you had played a considerable part in this yourself. You should not hide your light under a bushel. My congratulations for a job well done John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Reed Posted 13 May , 2005 Share Posted 13 May , 2005 That's very kind of you John, but I wasn't seeking praise by posting this - all I did was give the WFA some advice; thankfully, and full credit to them, they followed it. Saving the records is all that is important, and it has now been done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianw Posted 14 May , 2005 Share Posted 14 May , 2005 Yes, I think Paul does deserve some special thanks for his role in saving the cards. I was aware of his involvement and it is obviously very useful to have someone on board who is both respected for his expertise and possessing a relatively high profile. However, this was undoubtedly a team effort that secured such a good result. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinglma Posted 14 May , 2005 Share Posted 14 May , 2005 I'll second what ianw has to say - thanks to Paul, the WFA and to all involved in the collective effort which has achieved this result. I must admit I wasn't too optimistic about this at first but this is a great result for common sense. As others have noted to have lost these cards would have been an act of cultural vandalism. I am still dismayed however at the apparent readiness of the NA to collude in their destruction. The messages coming out of Kew seemed to be diminishing the importance of the MICs to ease this course of action. Well done all. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Simon Bull Posted 14 May , 2005 Share Posted 14 May , 2005 I agree - thanks to Paul and those who put in the effort to save these. Now these is no motive to underestimate the number of cards which have information on the back it will be very interesting to see the true number bearing such information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred W Posted 14 May , 2005 Share Posted 14 May , 2005 The following statement appeared in May's issue of Medal News; "Further to the Editorial last month, and a letter that we at MEDAL NEWS sent to the Ministry of Defence offering to house the Medal Index Cards ourselves, we have received a response from the Deputy Departmental records officer. This response states that "at the presnt time the Ministry of Defence together with the National Archives is engaged in discussions with a vetrans organisation about the long term future of the index cards." He goes on to add that " a permanent home has already been found for a small part of the collection-- the women's cards are destined for the Imperial War Museum." So it seems that whilst there are no guarantees being given (save in the last paragraph of the letter: "I can assure you that no decision on the retention or destruction of the cards will be taken until all such avenues have been explored") at least dialogue has been opened and the depth of feeling with regard to the future of the MIC's is at least known. We shall continue to do our utmost to ensure their future and will keep readers updated accordingly." Fred Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Furnell Posted 14 May , 2005 Share Posted 14 May , 2005 Congratulations to The WFA. I recieved a letter(Exactly the same as the one Les Talmer had.),from some bod in Westminster,which was not very clear. I still can't believe they wanted to get rid of them. Thanks for letting us know,Paul. All the best. Simon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enoch beard Posted 10 September , 2006 Share Posted 10 September , 2006 has anyone got a update on the m.i.c.'s ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_Hartley Posted 10 September , 2006 Share Posted 10 September , 2006 Enoch The last comment on the WFA's guest book is early July and said that they still hadnt got a permanent home for the cards and they wouldnt be available to the public until they have one. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enoch beard Posted 10 September , 2006 Share Posted 10 September , 2006 thanks john for the information, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaz Posted 10 September , 2006 Share Posted 10 September , 2006 having been a recent convert to the forum, this is news to me!! how about storage at RAF Wroughton. It is the large storage area for the oversize Science Museums exhibits and there are temperature and humidity controlls allready in situ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_Hartley Posted 10 September , 2006 Share Posted 10 September , 2006 Chaz Perhaps you should make your suggestion direct to the WFA. As I recall, the long term need is for suitably climate controlled (and accessible) archive storage for approx. 140 filing cabinets. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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