'Poor Start' to Army Reservist Recruitment Plan

There has been an "extremely poor start" to recruitment for a radically expanded reserves element of the Army, an external report published early by out-going Defence Secretary Philip Hammond has said. Retired Lieutenant General Robin Brims signed off the review, which resulted from a commitment made by ministers during the passage of the Defence Reform Act 2014.

The report was published by Mr Hammond as one of his final acts in office before departing the Ministry of Defence to become Foreign Secretary. He pointed out to MPs in a written statement he had "taken the decision to fulfil this obligation early" as it did not need to be done until next year.

Fears about slow recruitment to the reserves - a modernised version of the Territorial Army - have dogged the Future Force 2020 plans since they were announced. In his review, Mr Brims, a veteran of the wars in Bosnia and Iraq, said: "Our major concern rests with the extremely poor start made to Army Reserve recruiting in the first 18 months of the programme.

"Although we have observed improvements in the overall numbers being attested in the latter months of the reporting year, the initial poor performance has been worrying both because it compounds the challenge to reach targets for later years and because it has been so widely publicised that it may well have become a disincentive to potential recruits in all three services."

Last month, the National Audit Office warned the 2018 target for recruitment of the reserves could be missed by up to six years, also questioning the claimed savings of more than £10 billion. In his statement to MPs, Mr Hammond said: "This House will know that the Defence Reform Act 2014 includes a statutory obligation from next year to commission and publish such a report. I have taken the decision to fulfil this obligation early. "I am grateful for the work of the Team. I will take some short time to consider the report's findings and recommendations and we will provide a full response to the Team in due course."