Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the (1) nominal, and (2) actual, strength of the Royal Air Force.

The workforce requirement of the Royal Air Force is 31,869 and the actual strength is 29,853.

Such plans however are not static and the Department quite rightly assesses and revises workforce plans to make sure Defence has the right people, with the right skills, at the right time, in the right place to deliver for the UK.

The Prime Minister’s announcement on 19 November 2020 to increase Defence funding by £24.1 billion over the next four years marked the first outcome of the Integrated Review. The review is due to be published in early 2021 and further details of the new platforms, capabilities, programmes and personnel opportunities that stem from it will follow in due course.