The armed forces in March will launch a year-long paid training program for under-25s in the armed forces, the defense ministry announced today, hoping to attract more young people to the military.
The pilot program will initially involve 150 people, but the government hopes in the long term to expand it to offer more than 1,000 places.
This is part of our “commitment to reconnecting our society and our armed forces,” British Defense Secretary John Healy said.
It should be noted that while conscription has not existed in the UK since 1960, Britain’s chief of the armed forces, Richard Knighton, warned on December 15 that “more people” need to be “ready to fight” in the face of growing threats, particularly from Russia.
“This is a new era in defense,” Healy emphasized. Under the new scheme, young people will receive training within the army, air force or navy. The government has not specified the amount of remuneration they will receive. The program “will enable young Britons to discover the incredible skills and training that the military offers”, the Defense Secretary said.
The skills they will acquire will help them “succeed in both military and civilian careers,” the ministry’s announcement underlines. At the end of the training, they will be able to decide whether or not to stay in the army.
The debate about military service in Europe is intensifying
This program comes as the debate surrounding military service intensifies in many European countries.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced at the end of November that he was reviving a ten-month “national service” for young adults, which would be “purely military” and voluntary, to “meet the needs of the armed forces” in the face of Russian threats and the increased risk of war.
Germany has reinstated a voluntary military service of at least six months for men and women aged 18.
