‘Hollowed out’ forces not ready to fight Russia
Lack of soldiers and arms must be addressed with major shake-up, warns landmark report
BRITAIN’S “increasingly overstretched” Armed Forces are not ready for a war with Russia, a damning inquiry by MPs has concluded.
A year-long review by the Commons defence committee found that the Government “will never achieve warfighting or strategic readiness” without urgent reforms to reverse a recruitment crisis and dramatically boost Britain’s stockpile of weapons and ammunition.
In a stark report, the MPs said that the Armed Forces required more funding to “engage in operations whilst also developing warfighting readiness” or it would have to reduce the “operational burden” on the military.
Amid increasing pressure on defence spending, the committee discovered that £1.95 billion of funding awarded in the Budget last spring may now be used to plug shortfalls in defence rather than to replenish and boost stockpiles.
Writing in The Telegraph today, Sir Jeremy Quin, the committee’s Conservative chairman, states that the UK “must rise to the challenge” amid warnings that Nato countries may have just three years to prepare for a Russian offensive. Sir Jeremy, who was defence procurement minister until 2022, says: “To confront the threats we face with confidence, we need to know that we would be ready for war.”
The cross-party committee’s warning came after it was told by former defence chiefs that the Armed Forces had been “hollowed out” since 2010 and, “in a peer-on-peer conflict... would have exhausted their capabilities after the first couple of months of the engagement”.
The report states: “The UK Armed Forces have deployed above their capacity in response to the worsening security situation, but all have capability shortfalls and stockpile shortages, and are losing personnel faster than they can recruit them.”
Sir Jeremy adds: “The MoD has acknowledged that only five personnel are recruited for every eight that leave the military.” He says a renewed focus on recruitment is “vital and timely”.
No 10 last month ruled out conscription when Gen Sir Patrick Sanders, the Chief of the General Staff, said that the UK must be ready to train citizens for a future conflict.
However, Gen Martin Herem, commander of Estonia’s Defence Force, which borders Russia, called on Nato countries to begin conscription programmes. “Whatever is scary for me, is not scary for the French or the English. That’s why it’s very hard to motivate their populations to join any kind of volunteer military movement ready to defend the country,” he said.
“I definitely suggest for all countries to establish some kind of conscript-type of citizen services.
“First based on volunteers, like a oneyear contract which includes the training and then another half year of service, before sending them to the reserves. That’s how you will have a reserve,” he added.
A major weakness identified following evidence submitted by current and former defence chiefs, industry figures and ministers was a lack of domestic manufacturing capability to produce weapons, combat vehicles and ammunition at the pace required to replenish stockpiles and respond to the demand that would be created by a war.
In evidence to the committee, Lord Houghton, who was chief of the defence staff between 2013 and 2016, said that the UK had been taking a “risk” by
THE Army has failed to meet its recruitment targets at all training centres for the past five years, the Ministry of Defence has revealed.
Figures released by the Government show that since 2018 three in four of the Army’s main basic training bases failed to meet targets every year.
The Army Foundation College Harrogate, the Infantry training Centre, Catterick, the Army Training Centre, Pirbright and the Army Training Regiment Winchester were supposed to begin their training programmes with 44,111 recruits but only 35,638 began the courses.
Of those around starting figures, 20 to 30 per cent would have dropped out through injury or choosing to leave.
The disclosure follows a parliamentary report by the defence select committee entitled “Ready For War”, which says that the Armed Forces are facing a recruitment and retention crisis. The report says the Army is working at 130 per cent capacity, the Royal Navy has too many tasks and not enough ships and the RAF revealed that their operational sortie number had doubled in 12 months.
The report, which also criticises the Ministry of Defence for a lack of transparency evidence sessions with MPs, said that for every eight troops who leave the Armed Forces only five join.
Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, said on Friday that the public could “rule out” conscription and said the Army had seen almost double the number of recruits last month than in the same period last year. It is understood that 10,800 people signed up last month – more than double the monthly average of 5,300 last year.
However, recruiters are concerned about a “perfect storm” of low unemployment, allegations of bullying, sexual assault, suicide and rapes at training centres that over several years have caused a shortfall in the numbers of potential recruits.
MoD statistics released in a Freedom of Information request show that between 2015 and May 2023, at least 267 instructors at the training centres were charged with abuse-related offences including actual bodily and common assault. In October last year North Yorkshire police said that 13 sexual offences had been reported at the Army Foundation College between 22 July 2022 and 17 August 2023.
During 2021, there were 22 victims of sexual offences at the Harrogate college. In January 2023 one instructor, Cpl Simon Bartram, was sentenced to 20 months’ military detention, after being found guilty at court martial of sexual assault and eight counts of cruel or indecent disgraceful conduct.
The Army Foundation College trains the youngest soldiers in the Army who can join up aged just 16. The recruits spend 48 weeks at the college where they complete phase 1 of basic army training before moving on to other establishments.
The Harrogate centre was the only training base which started a training year with the correct number of troops, and that was in 2018/19 when it had a surplus of 85 personnel. The Infantry Training Centre in Catterick, which crucially supplies troops for the Army’s fighting regiments, like the Paras and the Guards, has had a shortfall of troops joining up every year since 2018.
The Army Training Centre at Pirbright, which trains troops for regiments such as the Royal Corps of Signals, the Army Air Corps and the
‘MoD has found itself in a perfect storm of a shortage of recruits compounded by allegations of abuse’
Royal Engineers, was more than 1,203 troops short last year. The Army Training Regiment Winchester, which conducts basic training for a variety of units including the Adjutant’s General Corps and the Army Medical Corps, should have begun its training course with 1,034 personnel but only 593 started.
The figures were released in response to a parliamentary question tabled by the Labour MP Luke Pollard.
Colonel Phil Ingram, a former Army Intelligence Officer and Iraq War veteran, said: “The MoD has found itself in a perfect storm of a shortage of recruits compounded by allegations of abuse.”
An Army spokeman said: “The Army achieved its recruitment targets in 2019/20 and 2020/1 and 98 per cent of the target in 2021/22, despite the challenges caused by pandemic lockdown restrictions.
“Despite a challenging recruitment environment, we continue to attract large numbers to a career in the British Army.”