As well as highlighting the whole issue of metal theft, the campaign seeks to actively protect war memorials by marking any metal plaques with so called “smart water” which shows up under ultra violet light, and which helps to trace metal which may have been stolen from a commemorative site.
Mark, who served as an Infantry Officer in the Territorial Army during the Cold War, and who is also patron of the Rayleigh branch of the Royal British Legion, has been disturbed by the activities of heartless metal thieves who try and remove commemorative plaques from War Memorials to then sell the metal for scrap. Mark has discussed this with executives from the War Memorials Trust, including its Director, Frances Moreton, and he also attended a meeting at the House of Commons to show his support for the campaign.
Commenting on this new initiative to help protect the country’s War Memorials from thieves, Rayleigh and Wickford MP Mark Francois said:
“Bearing in mind that these memorials commemorate those who gave their lives in order that we could be free, it is an absolutely despicable crime that anyone would seek to desecrate them for their own illegal gain. This campaign from the War Memorials Trust, which I wholeheartedly support, is designed not just to raise awareness of this wicked crime, but also to do something to try and combat it, by using smart water to mark memorials, to make it more difficult for thieves to target them without getting caught. I do believe that this is an awful crime, and I am pleased to support any sensible initiative to try and crack down on it. I hope the campaign will be a success”.