§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many recruits to(a) the Royal Navy, (b) the Army and (c) the Royal Air Force aged 16 to 18 years came from (i) a family background and (ii) local authority care for each year since 1990. [26838]
§ Dr. ReidThe number of recruits under 18 years of age who entered the UK regular Armed Forces are detailed in the table:
Financial year RN 1Army RAF 1990–91 2n/a 8,270 1,410 1991–92 2n/a 7,100 661 1992–93 499 4,850 67 1993–94 232 2,938 70 1994–95 229 3,508 70 1995–96 579 4,397 299 1996–97 1,103 5,727 401 1997–983 570 3,025 319 1 The Army figures includes Apprentices and Junior Soldiers. 2 RN figures for FYs 1990–91 and 1991–92 are not available. 3 Data for FY 1997–98 covers the period 1 April 1997 to 30 Seotember 1997. The further information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.