Letter from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary
of State for Defence to the Chairman
Thank you for your recent letter to Adam, in
which you outlined the Committee's concerns regarding recruit
numbers at certain training establishments. I am replying because,
although Adam leads on the HCDC Duty of Care Inquiry, all other
matters concerning recruits and our training establishments fall
within my area of responsibility.
You are right to note that recruit numbers at
these establishments are lower than in previous years. The reasons
for this vary for each Service, although contrary to the Daily
Telegraph's assertion, we have not instituted any "recruiting
bans". Nonetheless, recruiting targets, like the Services'
manpower requirements, are dynamic, and reflect both current and
future need. You will also be aware, following the Secretary of
State's announcement in the House, that the aspirations the Department
outlined in last year's Defence White Paper will have a significant
impact on future force structures. The Services are planning their
future manpower requirements accordingly, and in some cases, as
you noted at RAF Halton, this is already being reflected in the
numbers of recruits.
The reduced recruit numbers noted at HMS RALEIGH,
on the other hand, are largely the result of increased efficiency
in the initial training process. The RN's Wastage Action Plan,
implemented over the last two years, has been extremely successful
in reducing Phase 1 and 2 training wastage from approximately
35% of entries 2 years ago, to 25% this year. Wastage during Phase
1 training at HMS RALEIGH has reduced from 25% to 13%. This has
enabled the delivery of the required trained output from a smaller
number of recruits. As a result, entries to HMS RALEIGH in May
and June 2004 totalled 380, whilst the equivalent number in 2003
was 537.
RM recruitment has posed some recent issues.
Entry shortfalls began in February 2004 after 18 months of near-100%
achievement. These shortfalls resulted from significant reductions
in initial enquiries and subsequent applications, which first
became apparent in July 2003. Consequently, during the five months
from February, entries to CTC Lympstone have totalled 303 against
a total target of 500. A comprehensive action plan is in hand
to address difficulties across the entire recruiting and selection
pipeline and includes additional funding for marketing purposes.
Some elements of the plan have been implemented but it is likely
to be several month before we start to see positive results.
Army recruitment is bouyant and the Army Training
and Recruiting agency has out-performed against mandated targets
over the last two years, with the result that the Army's trained
strength has increased by over 3,300 in the past two years. However,
to maintain a proper balance in manpower numbers, it is sometimes
necessary to make' minor adjustments of inflow and outflow. This
has meant some slight alteration to the Phase 1 training patterns.
However, this does not in any way. equate to a "ban"
on recruitment, and the number of Royal Engineer trainees at ATR
Lichfield will be increased this Autumn.
July 2004
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