Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the number of additional service personnel who will be recruited to the (a) Royal Navy, (b) British Army, (c) Royal Air Force in the 2027-28 financial year, in the context of increases in defence spending.

The increase in defence spending is a vital part of ensuring the nation can realise the ambition which will be set out in the Strategic Defence Review (SDR). All Defence personnel - in and out of uniform - are at the heart of Defence's plans. The SDR has been considering all aspects of Defence, including the approach to recruiting, training, and retaining the people Defence needs, including Regular, Reserve, Civil Service, and Industry.

The new tri-service Armed Forces Recruiting Service will also launch in 2027, providing a flexible Candidate recruiting pathway, with the aim of recruiting from the broadest spectrum of society to attract the best talent into the Armed Forces.