National service could boost job chances, say Tories

Young people who undertake a full-time internship in the armed forces as part of a national service program could benefit from better work or study opportunities, the Conservatives said.

They suggest this could lead to fast-track interviews for civil service or private sector graduate programs.

Rishi Sunak said national service in other countries showed “how enriching it is for young people”.

Opposition parties called the move a “gimmick.”

The Conservatives have pledged that if they win the general election, 18-year-olds will have to take part in a program involving military or non-military service.

Other ideas listed by the party as possible incentives to apply for the scheme’s 30,000 military places include emphasizing national service in Ucas applications to universities and apprenticeships, and encouraging employers to consider those completing the internship when applying for a job.

The party said a royal commission would examine the details if it wins the July 4 poll.

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During National Service from 1947 to 1960, young men aged 17 to 21 were required to serve in the armed forces for 18 months – but this did not apply in Northern Ireland. The Conservatives say the royal commission would look into the issue.

Last week – a day after the election was called – Defense Minister Andrew Murrison told MPs there were no plans to reintroduce “any form of national service” and warned that if National service military recruits were kept in separate units, “it would be difficult to find an appropriate and meaningful role for them”.

But the prime minister said studies in Norway and Israel had demonstrated the benefits of national service programs.

“We want to ensure that Britain’s future generations can make the most of national service, which is why we are looking at ways to open doors they wouldn’t otherwise have access to through work or education.

“Only conservatives will take the bold steps necessary to ensure a secure future for the next generation.”

Campaigning in West Sussex, Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer described the plan as a “plan for an army of teenage dads” and “a sign of desperation”.

He also criticized the Conservatives’ proposal to fund it “by reversing leveling and with money from tax avoidance that we would use to invest in our NHS”.

Labor questioned how the MoD would fund 30,000 new beds for the program – and highlighted cuts to funding for the National Voluntary Citizen Service in 2022, when Mr Sunak was chancellor, saying the policy was “eroding from minute to minute.”

“What were the flaws in this youth service model that made it a poor use of money, which were corrected in the new plan proposed this week?” said a Labor spokesperson.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Foreign Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan blamed the cuts on the Covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine, and said the royal commission would examine questions of accommodation.

She added that the national service program would not be fully implemented until the end of the next parliament.

“The world is a very unstable place and not at all reassuring. We need our young people to understand and be part of our communities and our incredible country that is the United Kingdom,” she said.

“But we also need to make sure that they have the skills and the resilience, because we need a secure future for our country, because the world is not a safe place. And freedom is not free.”

On Sunday, Home Secretary James Cleverly ruled out any criminal sanctions against teenagers who refused to take part in any part of the project, saying: “No one will be jailed for this.”

But on Sky News, Ms Trevelyan suggested job prospects could be affected.

“Employers would make it clear that they would look at what you have done. It would be part of the normal toolkit that young people would present throughout their careers,” she said.

Asked on Times Radio whether parents would face prosecution if their 18-year-olds refused to enroll, she replied: “I’m not going to write the detailed policy now. That’s what it’s all about what will be served by a program of work of a royal commission.”