Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Chris Bryant (Labour). It was answered on Monday, 16 July 2007 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Military Recruitment and Retention

Question: On retention, there is a paradox in the fact that the quality and standards of training in the armed forces are now so high that almost all armed forces personnel have such a strong set of skills in terms of logistics, communications and many other areas that they are immensely valuable in the private sector. However, many of those who leave because they get offered much better pay elsewhere want to maintain a strong connection with the armed forces. Is there a way to maintain such stronger links in the future, not only through people volunteering as reservists for tours of duty but in other ways?

Answer: I take on board my hon. Friend’s point about there being significant challenges. We want to retain such connections through the reservist route and the Territorial Army; we wish to encourage that. As my hon. Friend rightly says, many people leave the armed forces with a wide range of skills and abilities which they put to good use when they enter the private and public sectors. We always keep our options open in terms of what we can do to improve retention and recruitment and continuing connection with the armed forces.

Secondary information