§ Mr. HoyleTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on(a) the Territorial Army's and (b) the cadets' role in recruiting regulars for the army; and if he will list the recruitment figures for regulars by region in each of the last three years. [69327]
§ Mr. Doug HendersonNeither the Territorial Army nor the cadet forces have a specific role in recruiting to the regular Army. However, a number of members of both organisations go on to join the regular Army. The numbers of recruits to the regular Army, by region, in each of the last three years are as follows.
17W
1996 1997 1998 Region Total Ex TA/Cadet Total Ex TA/Cadet Total Ex TA/Cadet East Anglia 618 171 551 143 518 155 East Midlands 1,286 393 1,136 274 1,288 287 North West 2,067 458 2,097 442 2.363 408 North 1,701 497 1,703 398 1,848 390 South East 2,632 1,031 2,158 737 2,395 603 South West 1,168 346 1,168 335 1,308 313 West Midlands 1,049 308 1,019 304 1,210 290 Yorkshire and Humberside 1,649 424 1,599 394 1,887 430 Northern Ireland 473 135 419 122 529 122 Scotland 1,660 426 1,642 400 2,117 491 Wales 813 217 922 234 1,047 214 Location not recorded 393 153 87 The regions are as defined in the publication "Regional Trends" published by the Office for National Statistics. The figures reflect numbers recruited by Army/Armed Forces Careers Office in the regions in question. They do not necessarily indicate individuals' region of origin.