Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has to increase the number of serving personnel in the British Army.

The current Government inherited a crisis in recruitment and retention from the last administration, and we are committed to addressing this through a range of targets, initiatives and measures.

The British Army continues to implement Future Soldier, with a whole force of over 100,000 comprising of 73,000 Regular Service Personnel and 30,100 Army Reserve.

Recruiting and retention remain one of our highest priorities - the Army/Capita Recruiting Partnering Project is completely focused on delivering a significant increase in recruitment in 2025-26, with the Army’s Retention Strategy focusing on reducing voluntary outflow.

On 6 February 2025 we announced the award of the contract for the new tri-service Armed Forces Recruiting Service (AFRS). It will provide a streamlined, single-entry point for prospective recruits, with the aim of attracting the best talent from across the country into the Armed Forces. The service will launch in 2027, replacing the individual schemes run by the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force.

Further announcements will be made in due course, in line with the future Strategic Defence Review.