Army launch recruitment drive for 10,000 new young soldiers ahead of redundancies
Telegraph
The Army has launched a campaign to sign up 10,000 new recruits just weeks before thousands of experienced soldiers who have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan will lose their jobs.
Last of the boy soldiers? Bid to end centuries of tradition by banning the Army from recruiting under-18s
Mail on Sunday
Sir Nick Harvey describes policy is 'increasingly anachronistic'; Believes 16 and 17-year-olds more likely to die or be seriously wounded; Also claims millions of pounds is wasted due to high drop-out rates
Conscientious objector Joe Glenton on being jailed for refusing to fight
Metro
Joe Glenton, a former soldier in the British army, has served his country and risked his life in Afghanistan. He’s also been called a coward. The reason? After returning to Britain after his first tour of Afghanistan, he became a conscientious objector (CO) and refused to go back.
Alex Cunningham MP: Stop armed forces recruiting children
Central Lobby
Ahead of his debate today, Labour MP Alex Cunningham argues that the UK’s "routine" practice of recruiting 16 year olds into the armed forces has to stop.
Recruiting British soldiers at 16 isn’t just morally wrong. It’s bad economics
Open Democracy
The Ministry of Defence wastes £94 million every year training minors for army roles which could be filled more cost-effectively by adult recruits, says a new report launched today by human rights groups Child Soldiers International and ForcesWatch.
Army recruitment at 16 ‘should stop’
BBC
The "outdated" practice of recruiting 16-year-olds into the Army is wasting up to £94m a year and should stop, two human rights groups have said.
Millions ‘wasted’ on junior army recruits, report claims
The Telegraph
Tens of millions of pounds is wasted on training young soldiers for roles that could be filled more cost effectively by adults, a report has found.
Army recruitment of under-18s wastes £94 million every year, claims new report
ForcesWatch press release
The Ministry of Defence wastes up to £94 million every year training minors for army roles which could be filled more cost-effectively by adult recruits, according to a new report launched today by human rights groups Child Soldiers International and ForcesWatch.
Nuclear Weapons and Militarisation in the UK
ForcesWatch
A society has to be militarised for a government to justify the development and maintenance of nuclear weapons to its citizens; militarisation creates a culture of acceptance. It popularises military euphemisms such as ‘Defence’, ‘Security’, and – particularly relevant to nuclear weapons – ‘deterrent’, and makes it hard to for those challenging these to be seen as credible.
Combat soldiers more likely to commit violent crimes: study
Reuters
British soldiers who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan - particularly young men and those who have seen active combat - are more likely to commit violent crimes than their civilian counterparts, according to research published on Friday.