Patrick Mercer’s remarks about black soldiers have reopened the whole issue of racism in the Armed Services.

Although many ethnic-minority soldiers said that the MP’s comments were proof that racism was still a large problem in the Forces, others who served alongside Mr Mercer defended his record and that of the military.

Private Marlon Clancy, who is setting up a union to fight alleged racism in the Army, said: “Patrick Mercer’s comments prove the British Forces are institutionally racist. While I am shocked that he has made comments like this, I am pleased that the Conservative Leader has sacked him.”

Private Clancy’s intervention was not supported by one of the black soldiers who served with Mr Mercer. Owen Lewis, a retired Warrant Office Class One, said that he rose to the rank of regimental serge-ant-major while serving under Mr Mercer in the 1st Battalion The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters.

Mr Lewis, 44, agreed that the comments made by his former commanding officer were unfortunate. “But Colonel Mercer is not in any sense a racist,” he said yesterday. “I served with him and have a lot of respect for him and I wouldn’t have got to be regimental sergeant-major if there had been racism in the regiment.”

Mr Mercer was a lieutenant-colonel and the commanding officer of the 1st Battalion The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters from 1995 to 1998, when Mr Lewis was a colour sergeant with the rank of Warrant Officer Class Two. He left the Army in 2001 after 22 years’ service and now works at Sheffield Crown Court.

Mr Lewis said: “I was often called a black bastard when I was in the Army — although never by Colonel Mercer — and you just had to deal with it. But that was some time ago. Things have changed now. But it’s absolutely wrong to say that Colonel Mercer would have put up with racism in the regiment. I worked with him on initiatives to eradicate racist attitudes and to recruit people from ethnic minorities.”

Mr Lewis said that David Cameron, the Tory Leader, had been too quick to sack Mr Mercer from the front bench. “Mr

Cameron visits areas with ethnic minorities and stands there to have his picture taken, but Colonel Mercer served with black soldiers and there was no better commanding officer in my view,” he said.

Mr Lewis agreed with Mr Mercer that there were black soldiers who used the “race card” to justify being absent without leave. “There were some bad eggs who used the race card, but if there was genuine racism it would have been properly investigated and dealt with,” he said.

Leroy Hutchinson, a former corporal who also served in Mr Mercer’s regiment, defended the MP. He said: “I am a black man who served with Patrick for 12 years. I was promoted to corporal under his command. He never tolerated racism in the battalion and not a single one of his men would consider him to be racist.”

The Armed Services have admitted to having problems with racism and bullying but say these have been swept away by a new culture of tolerance and equality.

The Commission for Racial Equality signed an action programme with the Ministry of Defence five years ago to stamp out racism after several lurid reports emerged of racist bullying.

The Army, the Navy and RAF have a policy of zero tolerance on racism and operate a system that gives victims of harassment, whether on the grounds of race, religion or sex, the opportunity to seek help outside the chain of command if they feel inhibited from going to their superiors.

One of the warnings given to all commanding officers and the noncommissioned officers who have the closest daily contact with soldiers spelt out the difference between banter and bullying. Banter is a favourite form of supposedly harmless abuse used by parade-ground NCOs. But banter that refers to the skin colour is banned.

Today, with such stringent rules about racist behaviour, the number of cases of alleged racism have dropped sharply. However, the changed culture has not significantly increased the number of soldiers from ethnic minorities.

Despite frequent recruiting campaigns, the Army is still nowhere near the 10 per cent that would match the national percentage of black and Asian people.

Mr Mercer told The Times: “The people under my command can speak more eloquently than I can about the way I commanded the regiment. But I deeply regret if my remarks have caused offence.”

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