‘Dismal’ failure of Army recruitment

MPs attack Capita’s role in shortfall

DEFENCE: The British Army and outsourcing giant Capita have “failed dismally” at meeting recruitment targets, an influential parliamentary committee has claimed.

A scathing report published today by the Public Accounts Committee branded the performance of the company “abysmal since it started”.

THE BRITISH Army and outsourcing giant Capita have “failed dismally” at meeting recruitment targets, an influential parliamentary committee has claimed.

A scathing report published today by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) branded the performance of the private sector services company “abysmal since it started”.

In 2012, Capita was controversially awarded the 10-year contract for Army recruitment, and has failed to meet any targets for new recruits since the £495m contract was signed.

But the cross-party committee highlighted in the report that both the private company and the Army “share responsibility for Capita’s terrible performance in recruiting new soldiers”.

It stated the Army “naively launched” into the agreement thinking it could “leave Capita to manage recruitment”, and that Capita had entered into the contract “without fully understanding the complexity of what it was taking on”.

The report goes on to say that the Recruiting Partnering Project, which was set up to find the quantity and quality of soldiers needed, was “overly complex and poorly implemented”.

The committee’s chairwoman, Meg Hillier, said the project was “intended to meet the Army’s annual recruitment targets and save money in the process”.

“It has failed dismally at the former and has a mountain to climb in order to hit its target for the latter,” she added.

A Capita spokesman said the partnership with the Army was “recently re-set” and has already led to improvements.

He added: “As we have previously stated, there were problems with the contract which the new management team has worked hard to address.”

An Army spokesman said it is “fully committed” to improving its recruitment process, and in working with Capita has “put in place a plan to address the challenges”.

The report comes after the Government announced that five of Britain’s defence bases earmarked for closure will now be kept open after a further review.

Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood made the announcement on the future of the facilities – which include RAF Molesworth, used by United States personnel – in a statement to MPs in the Commons yesterday.

The other bases are Norton Manor Camp, the Royal Marines Condor Airfield, MOD Woodbridge (Rock Barracks) and Royal Marines Chivenor, Mr Ellwood confirmed in an update on the Defence Estates Optimisation Programme.

It has failed dismally and has a mountain to climb to hit its target.

Meg Hillier, Public Accounts Committee Chairwoman.