Army (Non-British Citizens)

HC Deb 21 November 2002 vol 394 cc209-10W

Sir Michael Spicer

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of the British Army is comprised of soldiers who are not British citizens. [81096]

Mr. Ingram

[holding answer 18 November 2002]: The number of soldiers, both trained and untrained, in the British Army as at 1 October 2002 was 111,670; of these 3,580 were non-British personnel. This represents 3.2 per cent. of the total strength. These figures exclude Gurkhas, Full Time Reserve Personnel (FTRS), Royal Irish Home Service and Mobilised Reservists.