British Armed Forces Commander-in-chief is the British monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II, to whom members of the forces swear allegiance. The UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the British Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, as required by the Bill of Rights 1689. The Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and Royal Marines among with all other forces do not require this act. The armed forces are managed by the Defence Council of the Ministry of Defence, headed by the Secretary of State for Defence. The United Kingdom is one of five recognised nuclear powers, is
Irish in the British Armed Forces times John Joe McGee. Aside from the obvious paramilitary opposition to Irish involvement in the British Armed Forces, the Irish rebel song tradition has developed which also voices opposition to Irish enlistment or criticised the actions of the British forces in Ireland. Some of the best known of these include; "Join the British Army", "The Recruiting Sergeant", "Foggy Dew", "Come Out Ye Black and Tans", "Who Is Ireland's Enemy?", "Go On Home", among others. "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye" and "McCafferty", while not of republican origin, carry much of the same spirit. As part of the general Gaelic Revival of