HC Deb 21 May 1974 vol 874 cc171-2
9. Mr. Biften

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what are the current trends in recruiting to the Armed Services on the basis of the latest available information; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Mason

I am glad to say that the small but hopeful improvement in recruiting first noted at the beginning of the year appears to be continuing. However, it is too soon to predict how the situation might develop.

Mr. Bitten

For the benefit and enlightenment of his hon. Friends the Members for Preston, North (Mr. Atkins) and Salford, East (Mr. Allaun), will the right hon. Gentleman agree with my hon. Friends and myself that we should welcome the reversal in recruitment trends and place on record the fact that a prudent regard for national defence must require significantly larger forces than we currently possess?

Mr. Mason

I would not agree that it is necessary to have significantly larger forces than we possess at present, but in terms of total strength in the Armed Forces the figure is 349,000. Since the forecast total strength in last year's White Paper was 353,000, there has been a discrepancy over the year of about 1 per cent.

Mr. Kinnock

Does my right hon. Friend agree that if mansions were given to all naval sub-lieutenants and all Army captains this might have a remarkable effect on general recruitment, especially among homeless young people?

Mr. Mason

If we were able to offer homes to all our Service men this would no doubt have a great effect, but we cannot talk in those terms yet.

Mr. Younger

Will the Secretary of State give an idea of how this small but welcome improvement in recruitment affects each of the three Services? Is the Army participating fully in the improvement?

Mr. Mason

In the past the Army has suffered most and the Royal Air Force least, but since we are now getting over the hump in respect of the problem of the raising of the school leaving age the Army figures are beginning to improve.

Rear-Admiral Morgan-Giles

In considering the recent report of the Armed Forces Pay Review Body and the princely award of 50p per day to soldiers fighting in Belfast, did the Secretary of State take into account the effect of pay awards on recruiting?

Mr. Mason

Yes, Sir. One of the reasons for making the statement as quickly as we did was that we wanted to help recruiting. I felt that morale in the Armed Forces might be affected because of the problem of pay. The award of 50p a day—which amounts to£3-50 per week—for service in Northern Ireland has helped the situation considerably.