Kemi Badenoch has broken silence on the potential of reintroducing conscription to the UK if the Conservative party win the next general election, as fears grow over Britain’s military readiness
The Tories have broken silence on the potential of reintroducing conscription to the UK in the event they win the next general election. Fears that conscription could return to the UK have risen over recent years as international conflicts across the globe have many worried humanity is sleep walking into.
In the event a global conflict erupts many experts are worried the current size of the UK’s armed forces will leave us vulnerable and unable to effectively fight in a major conflict.
The fears have many wondering if conscription could be reintroduced in the near future as an attempt to bolster the UK’s armed force.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has broken her silence on the potential of bringing back conscription in the event the Conservative party find themselves in government after the next UK general election.
When asked if the UK should bring back conscription in a press conference yesterday the Tory leader said: “Mandatory (is) the issue.”
Badenoch added: “It’s not having a citizen service that we’re against, but making it mandatory and forcing young people to do it means that you’ll get a lot of people who have no business being in our armed forces being conscripted into that.
“So no, we do not support conscription. What we need to do is actually tackle the reasons why a lot of young people feel embarrassed about their country, feel that they can’t defend their country.”
Responding to the comments, a Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: “This government has delivered the biggest sustained boost to defence spending since the Cold War – taking spending to almost £300 billion to keep the British people safe. The UK regularly exercises alongside NATO allies to test and strengthen warfighting readiness and is NATO’s third-highest defence spender.
“Through the Defence Investment Plan, we’re investing £11.1 billion in weapons and munitions and creating an always-on munitions pipeline, strengthening our ability to deter the threats we face.”
The UK government currently has no plans to reintroduce conscription.