Sunak launches programme of National Service for 18-year olds

Today Rishi Sunak launched a new and unexpected policy to re-introduce national service for all 18-year olds in the UK. Posting on his X account, the Prime Minister stated that “this bold new model will open up a world of opportunity. It will make sure young people in the UK get the same chances in life as their peers in allies like Sweden, Norway, Denmark and France”.

He continued: “Everyone will get the life-changing chance to learn from the best of the best – from the men and women of our armed forces, our inspirational NHS staff or the fire service”.

It is fair to say this came somewhat out of the blue, and I am undecided at this stage how I view this policy. Whilst I can see some logic to it, it is difficult to see exactly how the PM envisages that this will make much of a dent in the Conservatives poll deficit.

On the one hand, it is conceivable that it may appeal to some voters of an older generation who feel that the youth of today lack discipline and would benefit from a kick up the backside. Much is made in the news of late of the knife crime epidemic escalating in London under the watch of Sadiq Khan. There is a school of thought that getting youths off the street and instilling a sense of national pride and community spirit might help to change the direction of travel that some troubled youths find themselves on.

It is also true that a number of countries around the world have a system of national service in place, and those countries enjoy significantly fewer instances of criminal activity per capita than we see here. Singapore is a good example of how compulsory national service can be of benefit to a nation.

However, there is something slightly dictatorial about announcing such a programme when the topic has not been subject to any parliamentary debate. Despite protestations to the contrary, the policy feels rushed, and so far appears to have split opinion across the age groups.

Time will tell whether this policy has any impact on the voting intentions of the electorate. At this stage, it seems unlikely that the Conservatives will ever have the opportunity to implement this policy.