Martin Docherty-Hughes MP, Shadow SNP Spokesperson for Defence, has voiced concerns over the sustainability of the UK’s military operations in light of a significant drop in navy personnel and recruitment rates.
Docherty-Hughes highlighted the geopolitical and economic threats posed by Houthi-led attacks in the Red Sea and the UK’s involvement in Operation Prosperity Guardian.
He questioned, “how sustainable this and future joint operations will be when increasing numbers of sailors have left the service, and the intake to replace them in the 12 months to March 2023 plunged by 22.1%?”
Responding to these concerns, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps conveyed confidence in the UK’s current military capabilities. He stated, “First, I am confident that we will be able to continue or increase our actions. We complete all our operational requirements at the moment.”
Acknowledging the tight labour market, Shapps added, “but I think that is a subject for celebration in this House: we are seeing such low sustained unemployment, even through some pretty turbulent times.” He reassured that the government would “redouble our efforts to ensure that all our military services can recruit the people they need.”
Shapps’ response might be seen as somewhat tone-deaf given the context. While it’s true that low unemployment is generally positive, this perspective overlooks the specific challenges faced by defence in maintaining a robust and adequately staffed armed forces.
It has always been the case that high unemployment is good for military recruitment. So low unemployment is not ‘good’ for the Navy anyway. Question is, when is the government going to get it’s act together and sort out the bureaucratic nightmare faced by people trying to join up? Haven’t heard much about this lately – is it any way to being sorted yet?
“but I think that is a subject for celebration in this House: we are seeing such low sustained unemployment”
All else aside, that’s precisely what you don’t want when you’re trying to battle inflation and with rate cuts on the horizon. Further, higher unemployment from higher rates might actually help solve the recruitment problem.
Taken from Sir John Redwood’s blog “Only this weekend we read that in addition to breaking up for spares 30 of our precious Typhoon jets, Grant Shapps has decided to scrap the amphibious assault ships HMS Bulwark and HMS Albion to save money to pay for Sunak’s election tax giveaway The MoD increased headcount in 2023 from 62,000 to 67,000 – yet the Royal Navy has recruited insufficient sailors to keep the fleet at sea. With a horrendous major European war raging in Ukraine involving the distinct possibility that WW3 may have started, these cuts are a major strategic mistake.… Read more »
Can’t argue with any of that. Utter shambles
Hear, hear!
Sounds like the ghost of John Knot
I don’t agree with John Redwoods politics in a lot of areas, but he’s a clear man who knows his history. As well as a man who follows his primary beliefs…not a light weigh…unlike shapps who is a chancer and little else, this government have run out of serious minds, statesmen and women.
Redwood has an interest in the RN. For years he used to do motivation courses for UK plc CEO’s etc. He used Nelson and Collingwood as examples “how did Nelson persuade pressed men to do their duty?” Apart from being flogged if they didn’t, Nelson approved of large bounties for crews who had captured French ships. These were paid on a sliding scale with the Captain and officers getting the lions share, but the men too shared in the bounties and many went home wealthy. Some bought land and went into farming. Those who survived the battles were lucky; many… Read more »
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One of the issues highlighted recently is the overjealousness of the fitness requirements- e.g. applicants being rejected due to childhood illnesses that no longer afflict them. I also note that- while the RN does recruit from the wider Commonwealth- it only does so on a very limited basis, suggesting that there is a wider pool of potential applicants available.
Isn’t this recruitment problem in the Navy and RFA primarily down to wages?
I suspect it’s the whole pay/reward package. If you were going to work on a North Sea oil rig the pay would reflect the fact that you were stuck in a huge tin in the midst of cold and stormy waters. If you’re going to ask people to be away from their families for months at a time, and even when ashore being perpetually at risk of being redeployed to the other end of the country then that is only going to appeal to a small subset of the population, and you’re still going to have to make it worth… Read more »
The have to do some serious look at recruitment.. direct entry for older skilled individuals.. it works for medical provisionals and could work for any of the professions/skills lead areas ( clearly command, tactic ect are a specific skill only the armed forces train people in). a serious golden hand shake to get people back into the forces, as well as retention so they are keeping people. in and out careers…allowing young to join leave for a bit and rejoin without impact on career progression. maximising every part of the population…more women…until the armed forces are 50% woman they are… Read more »
I wouldn’t mind a short service system in place. For reasonably well-educated young people (like me) who are heading to University, if I could do a bit of training and go and spend six months on a frigate (like an extended gap year) I would, but the Navy is certainly seen as a career rather than a job
Today’s Telegraph carries a report into the Navy’s problems, including undermannining, written by an ex-matelot. Unfortunately it is behind a paywall.
This doesn’t always work, but sometimes you can breach a paywall by going into the url and typing “ cache: “ immediately before the “https:” (don’t include the speech marks)
I notice that with the DT site, the page actually loads before the paywall notification appears to block it. So a slow connection can work to your advantage…
Thanks Levi, I’ll give it a go.
Webpage archive can normally get around paywalls…
All designed.
by whom? I tend to believe that this is the result of incompetence and the focus by politicians on politics rather than the state. What happened to the concept of the “statesman”?
I think since the amount of cuts over the year’s , specially the 2010 Armed forces don’t really seem an option for school leavers some how.Closing down recruitment officers in towns and cities don’t help. Can the RN not take a look at our little friends from Nepal , just a thought ?
Well, if you don’t pay appropriately for the role, what do you expect? Let’s think, the base pay? Gash. The LSA/LOA? Laughable compared to civvies. Commitment bonus? What commitment bonus? Finally, the pension? A shadow of its former self and practically irrelevant until you’re nearly dead. It’s the same in the RAF. They’re asking people to leave their families behind 4 months every year. I suspect it’s even worse in the Navy – and for what? King and country? Give it a rest. Gone are the days when people join the services solely to serve the crown. If you want… Read more »
The RFA is in an even worse state. I don’t know how they staff even a single ship at the current pay rates. The US MSC pays about 400% what the RFA does.