Vigilance can confirm that figures of the United Kingdom’s Armed Forces just released by the country’s Ministry of Defence show that the Forces are currently at 99.1 per cent of their full time Trained Strength requirement.
According to an authoritative source at the MoD, this is up from 98.7 per cent a year ago, although there has been a decrease in the last quarter from 99.7 per cent. But in a country with unrivalled penchant for political correctness, the question keen watchers of the British society are asking is: “How representative are these figures, despite the recent publicly expressed frustrations of its Prime Minister David Cameron about the country’s multiculturalism project?
Vigilance learnt that 14,470 new recruits have joined the UK Regular Forces in the 12 months to 31 December 2010. This is a decrease of 9,540 from the 12 months to 31 December 2009, as, in line with reductions t announced in the Strategic Defence and Security Review, there is a reduced intake requirement.
The statistics also show that the number of people leaving the Trained Strength of the UK Regular Forces in the 12 months to 31 December 2010 has fallen by 5.4 per cent (1,040 people) compared with the same period a year ago.
As at 1 January 2011, the full time Trained Strength of the UK Armed Forces was 177,600 against a target of 179,130. This comprises 173,270 UK Regular Forces, 600 Full Time Reserve Service personnel and 3,730 Gurkhas.
As at 1 January 2011, the proportion of females in the UK Regular Forces was 12.2 per cent for officers and 9.1 per cent for other ranks. These percentages show a steady increase over the long term.
The percentage of UK Regular Forces from ethnic minority backgrounds has remained static at 6.6 per centof UK Regular Forces since 1 July 2009.
Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans, Andrew Robathan, declared after the release of the figures: “Our Navy, Army and Air Force must continue to attract the very best people for whom the Armed Forces offer a unique career opportunity. Hand-in-hand with an ongoing recruitment effort, we are working to ensure sustainable manning structures for the future.”