§ Mr. Banksasked the Secretary of State for Defence what measures have been taken for recruitment to the Territorial Army and Volunteer Reserve; and how many personnel have been recruited.
§ Mr. HayhoeOn 7 August my right hon. Friend announced a number of improvements in the conditions of service of the Territorial Army arising from the Shapland report, a copy of which has been placed in the Library. These included substantial increases in training bounties, to a maximum of £300 per annum; measures to improve training standards, including more paid voluntary training days each year; more opportunities for units to undergo overseas training; better overnight accommodation in TA centres; a simpler process of enlistment; and the return of the name "Territorial Army". These improvements should help to attract many new recruits, as well as encouraging existing volunteers to remain longer in the Force. In addition,426W recruiting campaigns have just been conducted in Northern Ireland, 16 to 30 September; Scotland, 30 September to 14 October; and England and Wales, 15 September to 4 November. These campaigns involved extensive press coverage at both national and regional level, together with radio and TV advertising, although the latter was unfortunately affected by the commercial television industrial dispute. The numbers recruited into the TA for the last four months for which figures are available are as follows:
- June 1,811
- July 1,229
- August 2,014
- September 1,970 (provisional figure only)