Recommendations & Conclusions
11 items
79
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
A number of our witnesses were concerned with how the UK Armed Forces utilised their reserve forces. Professor Justin Bronk suggested that neither the Army nor the Air Force had “really figured out how to use the reserves sustainably” and Lord Houghton told us that that the UK did “not …
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A number of our witnesses were concerned with how the UK Armed Forces utilised their reserve forces. Professor Justin Bronk suggested that neither the Army nor the Air Force had “really figured out how to use the reserves sustainably” and Lord Houghton told us that that the UK did “not have a properly functioning Reserve” which he described as a “national embarrassment”.165 Professor Vince Connolly told us that part of the issue for the Army Reserve was that it was expected to provide both “individual backfill and some measure of collective capability” but that its size and its training (focused on “a wide set of missions and tasks”) hindered its ability to provide sustainability in an enduring high intensity large scale conflict.166 Professor Sir Lawrence Freedman thought that the Reserve ought to become a “pretty high priority” and that work ought to be carried out by the Services on how best to use reservists as well as integrating the Reserve with the Regular Force. He suggested that “there is an awful lot you could do with the reserves at a time when you are finding it difficult to recruit the regulars. It is a cultural thing as much as anything else”.167 Box 2: The Reserve Forces The reserve forces are made up of the following components: • The volunteer reserve forces (also referred to as the Active Reserve) are the Army Reserve, the Maritime Reserve and the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. These are volunteers who commit to train for a certain number of days each year. Both civilians and ex-regular service personnel can join. • The ex-regular reserve force (also referred to as the Strategic Reserve) are those personnel who have left the Armed Forces but are subject to call-out (able to be mobilised for the period specified in their original commitment to serve) or recall (able to be mobilised in a national emergency despite having completed their residual commitment). • The Sponsored Reserve are reservists who are employed during a third-party contract to fulfil a
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Government response AI summary
The committee's response indicates that the government has acknowledged the issues with reserve forces and is deferring detailed action to be based on recommendations from the upcoming Reserve Forces 2030 Review and Haythornthwaite Review.
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Ministry of Defence
80
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
As with the regular Forces, the Reserve Forces also saw a higher outflow than intake in the year up to October 2023.168 The External Scrutiny Team (mandated to report on the ‘state of the volunteer reserve forces’) found in their 2023 annual report that “the state, 165 Q47; Q108 166 …
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As with the regular Forces, the Reserve Forces also saw a higher outflow than intake in the year up to October 2023.168 The External Scrutiny Team (mandated to report on the ‘state of the volunteer reserve forces’) found in their 2023 annual report that “the state, 165 Q47; Q108 166 Professor Vince Connolly (AFR0006) 167 Oral evidence taken on 5 September 2023, HC (2022–23) 1804, Q18–20 168 Ministry of Defence, Quarterly service personnel statistics 1 October 2023, 14 December 2023 34 Ready for War? or health, of the Reserve is poor and declining”.169 Despite this, they welcomed what they saw as a “strong narrative emerging which recognises the purpose of the Reserve” and a desire amongst the senior leadership of the Single Services and Strategic Command to make better use of the Reserve. In particular, they welcomed decisions by the newly established Army Reserve Executive Committee.170
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Government response AI summary
The committee's response implies the government acknowledged the concerns regarding the declining state of the Reserve Forces and intends to address them through recommendations from the forthcoming Reserve Forces 2030 Review and Haythornthwaite Review.
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Ministry of Defence
81
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
Both the Chief of the General Staff and the Chief of the Air Staff told us that they were trying to grow their reserve forces but were concerned by their ability to recruit.171 Conversely First Sea Lord felt that “recruiting reserves is in some areas proving easier” than recruiting regulars.172 …
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Both the Chief of the General Staff and the Chief of the Air Staff told us that they were trying to grow their reserve forces but were concerned by their ability to recruit.171 Conversely First Sea Lord felt that “recruiting reserves is in some areas proving easier” than recruiting regulars.172 Despite this, the Maritime Reserve still saw a reduction in strength of 7% in the year to October 2023.173 There was a general recognition of the importance of the “niche skills” that the Reserve currently brings but the Chief of the General Staff, the Chief of the Defence Staff and the Minister for the Armed Forces all acknowledged that the Reserve did not provide the mass which would be required in a time of war (a “second echelon force”).174 Overtasking
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Government response AI summary
The committee's response indicates that the government has acknowledged the challenges in growing and utilising reserve forces, deferring plans for improvement to future recommendations from the Reserve Forces 2030 Review and Haythornthwaite Review.
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Ministry of Defence
92
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
In December 2023, the MOD Permanent Secretary acknowledged that “inflow [into the UK Armed Forces] is not at the level we need, and outflow is too high” and (alongside the recommendations produced by the Haythornthwaite Review on zig-zag careers and total reward) pointed both to work being carried out on …
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In December 2023, the MOD Permanent Secretary acknowledged that “inflow [into the UK Armed Forces] is not at the level we need, and outflow is too high” and (alongside the recommendations produced by the Haythornthwaite Review on zig-zag careers and total reward) pointed both to work being carried out on new routes in, including allowing lateral entry into the Armed Forces, and on bringing people who had previously served back into the Armed Forces. He told us that pilot studies were being carried out and that he hoped to have a detailed implementation plan before Ministers before the end of 2023. He acknowledged that the Department had to “get after it at pace”.196
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Government response AI summary
The government indicates that a formal response to the Haythornthwaite Review's 67 accepted recommendations, outlining next steps for delivery and implementation, will be published during 2024, deferring the Permanent Secretary's hope for a detailed plan by the end of 2023.
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Ministry of Defence
108
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
There are multiple capability shortfalls within the UK Armed Forces. For that reason, we welcome the decision to maintain the Albion-class vessels in operational service until their out of service dates in the 2030s. However, we are also increasingly concerned about the ability of the Armed Forces to attract and …
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There are multiple capability shortfalls within the UK Armed Forces. For that reason, we welcome the decision to maintain the Albion-class vessels in operational service until their out of service dates in the 2030s. However, we are also increasingly concerned about the ability of the Armed Forces to attract and retain personnel. Whilst 221 Defence Committee, Ninth Special Report of Session 2017–19, Indispensable allies: US, NATO and UK Defence relations: Government Response to the Committee’s Eighth Report, HC 1569, Para 11 222 Defence Committee Second Special Report of Session 2023–24, Aviation Procurement: Winging It? Government response to the Committee’s Tenth report of Session 2022–23, HC 187, p 3–4 223 The World’s Biggest ‘Graveyard’ Houses Almost 4,000 Aircraft, Interesting Engineering, 16 August 2021 224 Oral evidence taken on 15 November 2023, HC (2023–24) 52, Q3–4 225 Q435 226 X (formerly known as Twitter) post by the Ministry of Defence, 6 March 2023 [Accessed 26 January 2024] Ready for War? 43 we welcome the Government’s recognition that these issues require fresh solutions and look forward to reviewing plans based on recommendations from the Reserve Forces 2030 Review and the Haythornthwaite Review to alleviate the crisis in the recruitment and retention of both Regulars and Reserves, we do not believe it is being carried out at the required pace. We heard no evidence that gives us confidence that the recruitment crisis will be resolved anytime soon.
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Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the challenges in recruitment and retention, stating that all 67 recommendations from the Haythornthwaite Review were accepted in the Defence Command Paper refresh. It commits to publishing a formal government response outlining next steps for delivery and implementation, including a roadmap for …
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Ministry of Defence
109
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
Efforts to improve the recruitment and retention of both Regulars and Reserves are currently being considered by the MOD. We therefore recommend that once decisions have been made to adopt these recommendations, an implementation timetable with measurable deliverables is produced and shared with us so that we can scrutinise the …
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Efforts to improve the recruitment and retention of both Regulars and Reserves are currently being considered by the MOD. We therefore recommend that once decisions have been made to adopt these recommendations, an implementation timetable with measurable deliverables is produced and shared with us so that we can scrutinise the progress made by the Department.
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Government response AI summary
The government commits to publishing a formal response to the Haythornthwaite Review during 2024, which will outline next steps for delivery, a broad roadmap for recruitment and retention, and regularly reported key progress indicators.
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Ministry of Defence
5
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
In a functioning democracy, the House of Commons Defence Committee needs to be routinely informed about the planning assumptions and readiness of the nation’s armed forces. We therefore recommend that—following the Minister’s welcome commitment to work with us—the Government propose how we and our successors can receive at least annually …
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In a functioning democracy, the House of Commons Defence Committee needs to be routinely informed about the planning assumptions and readiness of the nation’s armed forces. We therefore recommend that—following the Minister’s welcome commitment to work with us—the Government propose how we and our successors can receive at least annually a meaningfully detailed update on the readiness of the UK Armed Forces, taking account of our conclusions above. (Paragraph 35) 54 Ready for War?
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Government response AI summary
The government did not commit to providing routine detailed updates on planning assumptions and readiness, instead detailing recent financial allocations for resilience, munitions stockpiles, and replenishment of aid to Ukraine.
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Ministry of Defence
6
Recommendation
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
We also recommend that the Government explain why previously unclassified information about readiness is no longer published, recognise the reduction in public and parliamentary accountability that this has brought about, and seek to rectify the situation. In future, when a decision is being considered to classify previously available information, we …
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We also recommend that the Government explain why previously unclassified information about readiness is no longer published, recognise the reduction in public and parliamentary accountability that this has brought about, and seek to rectify the situation. In future, when a decision is being considered to classify previously available information, we recommend that the Government should consult the relevant House of Commons Select Committee before that decision is made. (Paragraph 36) Readiness of the UK Armed Forces
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Government response AI summary
The government's response discussed the importance of recruitment and retention for the Armed Forces, committing to publish a formal response to the Haythornthwaite Review recommendations during 2024, which does not address the committee's recommendation about classifying readiness information.
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Ministry of Defence
7
Recommendation
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
The commitments made to replenish and increase stockpiles made since the 2022 Autumn Budget have all been welcome. The question remains whether this is anywhere near enough to meet the potential threats we face. It is therefore disturbing to hear that the £1.95 billion awarded as part of the Spring …
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The commitments made to replenish and increase stockpiles made since the 2022 Autumn Budget have all been welcome. The question remains whether this is anywhere near enough to meet the potential threats we face. It is therefore disturbing to hear that the £1.95 billion awarded as part of the Spring 2023 Budget may instead be used to meet budget shortfalls. We recommend that the MOD reconsider further delaying its ability to regenerate warfighting resilience in this manner. We further recommend that the MOD produce a breakdown of the allocation of the awards from the Autumn 2022 and Spring 2023 Budgets to provide clarity as to how much is allocated in practice in support of replenishing and increasing stockpiles.
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Government response AI summary
The government's response deflects the recommendation regarding stockpiles and budget allocation by focusing entirely on recruitment and retention issues, stating a formal HMG response to the Haythornthwaite Review will be published in 2024 to outline next steps for people-related reforms.
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Ministry of Defence
9
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
Efforts to improve the recruitment and retention of both Regulars and Reserves are currently being considered by the MOD. We therefore recommend that once decisions have been made to adopt these recommendations, an implementation timetable with measurable deliverables is produced and shared with us so that we can scrutinise the …
Read more
Efforts to improve the recruitment and retention of both Regulars and Reserves are currently being considered by the MOD. We therefore recommend that once decisions have been made to adopt these recommendations, an implementation timetable with measurable deliverables is produced and shared with us so that we can scrutinise the progress made by the Department.
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Government response AI summary
The government's response outlined the new purpose of Defence and broad strategic investments and capabilities from the Defence Command Paper 2023, but did not commit to providing an implementation timetable with measurable deliverables for recruitment and retention initiatives.
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Ministry of Defence
18
Conclusion
First Report - Ready for War?
Deferred
Personnel need time to recover from operations, and time to train and develop new skills. But the demand of operations makes that harder to achieve. It is unsurprising that more people are leaving the Forces than joining them. All three services have growing capability shortfalls—these have been a feature of …
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Personnel need time to recover from operations, and time to train and develop new skills. But the demand of operations makes that harder to achieve. It is unsurprising that more people are leaving the Forces than joining them. All three services have growing capability shortfalls—these have been a feature of our inquiries over the course of this Parliament. As these shortfalls increase, this places greater pressure on those who remain, leading to a vicious cycle.
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Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the issue of personnel shortfalls and states that a formal response to the Haythornthwaite Review recommendations on recruitment and retention, outlining next steps and a roadmap, will be published in 2024.
Read full response →
Ministry of Defence