Should unemployed young people be forced to undertake national service?

The ex-boss of Tesco believes jobless young people should receive military training in return for social security payments. Is this the answer to Britain’s recruitment crisis, asks Sean O’Grady

Marching orders: the prospect of more wars in Europe has concentrated minds back on conscription (Getty)

Whether a man who’s never had to fight anything more lethal than a “price war” with Lidl is adequately qualified to make such a suggestion is arguable. Still, John Allan, ex-boss of Tesco has been bold enough to say that unemployed young people should be made to undertake military training in return for social security payments. It is, of course, not the first time that someone in no danger of conscription has casually called for the younger generation to be put in the army to sort them out.

What’s wrong with stacking shelves?

Nothing, and you run only a small risk of a shrapnel wound, but Allan has grander things in mind for the people known, somewhat disrespectfully, as “Neets”, ie 18- to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training. There are some 950,000 registered, and they’d make quite a difference to the currently understrength British army of 73,847 at the last count, even if only as a reserve. Allan says: “We could reintroduce military training for people who are not working. That would be a way of actually helping us with, you know, stepping up our defence capability as well, which is another important issue." He also offers up as an alternative “municipal work”, which may be a euphemism for street cleaning.

Would it work?

Yes, in principle. There’s no doubt Allan has a point when he argues that there is “no reason to believe” those not in education, employment, or training “are any less prepared to work, provided they're given the opportunities ... I think getting people into the habit of getting out of bed in the morning, going and doing some useful work is very habit-forming once people have done it for a while.”

What are the problems?

Not everyone is cut out for the forces, and the element of coercion erodes the spirit of a voluntary service motivated principally by patriotism and prepared to make sacrifices. Granted, he’s not suggesting sending them into combat, but there is some element of jeopardy for the individuals if they end up in an informal reserve or territorial group. The other problem is cost – training, accommodation, equipment, the time devoted by officers to the scheme would all have to be paid for out of the defence budget – with no guarantee that what the US defence secretary calls “warfighters” will emerge at the end of their semi-involuntary pupation.

Could it happen?

The prospect of more wars in Europe has certainly concentrated minds, and with the UK’s military strength having been hollowed out and America abandoning Europe, things will need to change. At the general election, Rishi Sunak suggested “modern national service”, military or civilian: “As is the case in other countries, we will provide a stipend to help with living costs for those doing the military element alongside their training.”

More promisingly, Liz Kendall also seemed to welcome the idea of matching unemployed youth with understaffed armed forces when she announced her welfare reforms last week. Asked by Tory backbencher Mark Pritchard if she agreed “that one way of attracting some people back into work would be to get more young people into His Majesty’s armed forces – the air force, the navy and the army – and will she discuss that with the defence secretary?”

Reeves eagerly said she did, “absolutely”: “Indeed, before I was appointed to this position, as a constituency MP in opposition I discussed with my local jobcentre and the armed forces recruitment team precisely these issues, because the exciting careers and opportunities that are available are really important for young people in my constituency and the right honourable gentleman’s. I will certainly have more conversations with colleagues in the Ministry of Defence to make sure we put this plan into action.”

So there’s a rare political consensus?

It is quietly emerging that squaddies and sailors must be found somewhere. The profile of the armed forces in national life has declined markedly since the end of the Cold War, but that may be about to change, given that growing political will, born of imminent necessity, to contemplate dispatching troops to Ukraine and elsewhere, not so much to fight a war but to deter aggression and avoid one.