An interesting report, which highlights the parlous state of Armed Forces recruiting:
https://www.markfrancois.com/sites/w...2026.07.17.pdf
The Regular strength of the UK Armed Forces is currently 138,350, 4.8% below the required number (liability). In the year to April 2017, 12,950 people joined the UK Regular Armed Forces but in the same period 14,970 left.
A combination of lower retention than expected and failure to achieve recruiting targets means this under manning is worsening and indeed has been for some time. The Royal Navy and the RAF are now running at around 10% short of their annual recruitment target, whilst for the Army the shortfall is over 30%. Constant pressure on recruiting budgets has only compounded the difficulty.
