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The Tory Defence Secretary has warned that army support for public services may not continue beyond the pandemic.
Ben Wallace said there is a danger of letting governments “off the hook” by bringing in soldiers to help solve domestic issues.
His comments came after the army was drafted in to help every part of the UK respond to the pandemic.
Personnel have assisted with covid testing and reinforcements have helped deal with Scotland’s ambulance crisis.
Speaking to the Record, Wallace gave a positive assessment of the assistance of the armed services.
He said: “ Nicola Sturgeon might be SNP but if people in Scotland need the support of defence, they’ll get it. That’s it.
“I didn’t get a sense of any particular ideology. I think there was a bit of resistance to publicising they were doing it.
“But people have a right, they all pay our taxes, they all pay us. That’s it. For me, there’s no qualms about it and I’m glad we can help.”
However, Wallace cautioned that support could not continue indefinitely after the pandemic.
He added: “It used to be very rare that the military came to the support of civilian authorities.
“And it was usually a type of crisis, like a pandemic, or floods or whatever.
“The danger is, governments get let off the hook when they can’t deliver their own policy and they just break glass in normal times for the Armed Forces.
“Our Armed Forces have a day job, they have lots of other things to do.”
He warned: “We are still in pandemic space… the Scottish asked for some combat medics and I agreed to that, the Northern Irish have asked for some combat medics and the Welsh have asked for some ambulance drivers, and I’ve agreed to that because we are all facing the follow-on fallout consequences of the pandemic.
“But fast forward a few years, you’re going to have to ask the fire brigades union.
“We’re not there for governments, where they make a policy failing, to just reach for the Armed Forces, wherever they are in the United Kingdom: England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The global pandemic has created some of the most challenging conditions in the history of the NHS and the situation in Scotland is not unique, with pressures being felt by health boards across the UK.
“We only request military assistance in extreme circumstances to support our NHS in a time of need and we are grateful to our Armed Forces for that support.
“We have seen first-hand the positive impact military assistance can have with the Scottish Ambulance Service benefitting from their experience in non-emergency driver roles and support to Mobile Testing Units.”
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