National Service if Tories are re-elected

[MaryMaryVeryContrary]

Thoughts? 🍿

Some do CCF too.

I'm sure many do. This isn't volunteering, though, is it?

5 out of 6 of us do…

I agree.
I was shocked when I read the headline because I automatically though of the type of NS my uncle did but on closer inspection of what it would entail I'm actually warming to the idea.
Done well it could be a beneficial experience all round.

This is a sure fire way to alienate most parents! Most will see this for the gimmick it is at their child’s expense and won’t vote now for Rishi regardless.

I am now hedging he isn’t even going to be in post for much longer because this is a spectacular own goal.

You cannot force a sense of community and civic responsibility. Making people do something against their will is only going to do the opposite.

Anyway, isn't community service what you get for committing a crime that isn't quite bad enough for prison (or if there are no spaces). I know we no longer treat 18 years old like adults but are we now just going straight to treating them the same way as criminals.

I don't think 18 year old Ivan in Siberia is necessarily in better shape than our own Jack, but if a government tells an 18 year old to get into uniform, he doesn't have a great deal of say in the matter. In fact Jack, living on an island, would find it more difficult to flee.

All of this is a very worst case scenario of course, and I hope it doesn't happen. I certainly think that if anything similar comes to fruition it will be more like a workfare scheme with a bit of Union Jack bunting stuck around it. But let's not pretend the government can't do really scary, coercive things if it puts its mind to it. Some of the objections on here to why "it won't work" are laughable, such as lack of public transport: don't they remember "on your bike" in the 80s? The only way National Service "won't work" is if the future government in question decide not to make it work, by having it as a tokenistic policy with no properly working infrastructure behind it. This would be the best case scenario, besides scrapping it altogether.

So badly thought out - the Tories are now going to waste a load of time and money costing it and outlining it in more detail - but it will never happen as this is just going to put people off voting for the Tories even more

Sorry hrtft BUT I think IF it was run efficiently it could be great. The French have a good system whereby you could do armed forces OR fire brigade, paramedic…you can even do librarian and other more civil based jobs I think. The idea is to give a sense of structure, work experience and national responsibility. And as many say the public do need to wake up and realise we need to be better prepared for a more unstable geopolitical future.

Try it and see! Being outside of your comfort zone or in a survival situation build mental and physical resilience. The first time you do something like this, it's scary. The second time you do it, it's fun.

Also no one said kids shouldn't have education and housing??

But what about the cyber attacks you talk about? Maybe the Russians could jam any detonation!? And it's not as if our borders down there are 100% secure....

Look I hope you are right. And if you are trying to convince yourself its going to be OK I apologise if I seem to be trying to worry you. But there's no guarantees in the world, especially at the moment and I just think we need to be better prepared than we are. That's all x

If he's really keen on cyber security, the best way to promote this wouldn't be to have some half-assed scheme of 18yos using a gap year to do something (what? with whom?) but by giving some of that money to universities so they can reduce fees for computer science and computer engineering degrees which have cyber security modules, and get people properly educated in that field.

Not going to happen. Just to get the Reform people/Express readers back.

"Cleverly told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that no-one would be “compelled” to do the military national services, and they they could instead participate in the civil elements.
These could include a range of things: uniform public service such as special constable, on call fire fighter, emergency health responder, environmental protection, he said.
He insisted it was fully funded, and the military elements had been discussed with senior military leaders"

So you live in a village with no transport links....how do you do compulsory "voluntary" service 25 days a year in the Uniformed public services?

Age restrictions? Yep - only applies to anyone who’s old enough to vote. So 18 min and no max. Exceptions based on clear medical grounds, hardly difficult through GP records really is it. Not all the roles be need to be physical or military, a huge proportion of the volunteer workforce is well into their 70s and beyond anyway.

Why should there be an upper age limit? My 70 something year old FIL is fit as a fiddle and there’s no reason whatsoever he couldn’t do something. Others might have someone in their forties or fifties in poor health, fine, but age is not a determinant of ability.

The other exception should be for people who volunteer anyway, you could net those days off so they can stay in the roles they know and make a difference in already.

It's ridiculous - and poorly thought out.

Leaving aside the forces and cyber security idea.

I do think tha young people should be encouraged to 'give back" and take an active role in their local community. But that starts with those opportunities being available - youth clubs for example could be an amazing hub for this kind of thing - where very real connections could be made.

No need to reinvent the wheel.
The Duke of Edinburgh scheme could be widened and properly resourced - it has an amazing framework and underlying principles - it just got co-opted along the way as a way to increase chances of university placements.

Have well resourced volunteering hubs in schools - dedicate one afternoon a week to volunteering in the curriculum. The safeguarding redtape for organisations to offer volunteering to under 18's puts many organisations off (same for work experience). Fix this problem first.

So many things that could be offered to the same end that don't sound like right wing pandering

Let's assume for a minute it does actually happen and is properly thought out and implemented.

So on MN in 2026 or 2027 there will be the threads of parents claiming how unfair it is, how their DD or DS should be an exception etc etc.

You've not actually told us how they'd manage to coerce the population into it yet, though. Be specific. Are we talking about, say, an Eritrean style policy to try and stop people getting their teens out before the conscription age?

I don't see that refusing benefits is any sort of threat, or indeed that people are demanding stuff for free. Massive numbers of 18 year olds already work, full time, in training, or to fund themselves in universities. The point is that they would like the choice. If you use the removal of benefits as a threat, the reality is that National Service will become a two-tier system with the only people it is actually enforced against being the poorest members of society and those unable to find paid work due to health and learning difficulties.

I'm starting to think Sunak has just had enough and is throwing the election. There was an interesting emergency edition of The Rest Is Politics when the election was announced, and the number of senior Tories quietly messaging Rory Stewart to admit they didn't have a clue what was going on or why July 4th was picked was pretty striking. I wonder if it will turn out to be the same with this new mad idea?

Yes put the entire population through a govt run thought modification camp, with physical fitness & arms training.

What could possibly go wrong?

I think as far as I remember as I was born later was the last boomers were born in 1964 .

The poshos will just do the 24 days in one hit abroad building houses in Africa on a holiday volunteering trip. Probably after using gofundme to pay for it.