If you agree with the so called National Service proposals

[Outdoorsygirl1]

Would you still agree if it applied to everyone over 18 not just 18 year olds?

So everyone able bodied over 18 had to either complete a year in the military or undertake 24 days of unpaid work.

If not then why not?

More societal responsibility. Actually it would be a great policy for the Labour party, much more a socialist concept. I suspect they are so against it, because they didn't come up with it, but with the majority of those polled in favour, including young people, I do wonder whether this isn't actually a really good idea.

Yes. The military stream would be paid, the volunteering not.

I think it is. The Tory’s incompetence has provided a great scapegoat for our entitled and useless public, one doesn’t exclude the other.

If 24 days of delivering prescriptions to the elderly has you foaming at the mouth and talking of Nazi Germany, you’ve got to question yourself.

Everyone wants everything for free or in return for zero contribution. I started a thread on what our responsibilities should be as citizens, there were very few responses and those who did reply didn’t seem sure. Everyone knows what they feel they are entitled to, however.

I would never vote Conservative but I do think national service is a good idea. I would be happy to volunteer (although I already do more volunteering days than that each year). I volunteer helping young people and many of them would benefit from a form of national service. It doesn't have to be military. Provision for teenagers is very poor in this country, particularly for those not in education, employment or training.

It’s a stupid idea but I certainly think it should extend to everyone - give your time to the state for free and build a better country!

I want to know who are the people and society that raised these 18 year olds who lack so much moral fibre - that society certainly needs to think less of its immediate selfish needs and wonder how it got there. Not pin it on 18 year olds! We actually need them to support our ageing population so I reckon it’s them that need the support. If older people feel so strongly about the state of the country then they can work for free to support it. That’s what this stupid policy is.

I live in quite a deprived area. I agree that volunteering is a middle class luxury. Most of the kids my son went to college with were juggling family responsibilities eg being a young carer for ill/disabled family members, studying, working at least one if not two jobs to help with household expenses or to help pay for things they need for uni and in some cases trying to keep up a sport/ involvement in performing arts. When exactly are they going to be allowed some down time.

Take Denmark for example. Yes, there is National service, but there is also free education, provision for sports and the arts participation for young people, mental health services, help with accommodation costs and a myriad of other things.

Regardless of whether this specific policy is workable, I am all for anything that helps reunite and harmonise what has become an incredibly polarised society. Hyper-individualism is one of the worst things we've ever imported from America and if we want our society to survive the global tough times ahead we're going to have to learn to be a little less self-focused and a little more resilient.

I would like to see certain old world values such as duty and self-discipline making a comeback.

As for the question in the OP, yes I would be fine with national service being for everyone who is capable of doing it, as long as there is no significant financial disadvantage to doing so. This is the main issue I see with it.

I would be prepared to put myself at the front of the queue if they needed volunteers to test the programme, and I mean that wholeheartedly.

It’s now been cut down to a one week residential, at least in our area

I am very pro volunteering - met my husband volunteering years ago, my daughter volunteers now.

BUT I think this is an appalling idea. Firstly it’s utterly impractical. Managing volunteers is hard. DBS checks, training etc etc. Managing volunteers who don’t actually want to be there is going to be next to impossible. Finding them tasks that are safe and appropriate for them to do and don’t pose any risk to others - so most volunteering involving any contact with potentially vulnerable others is going to be out.

Secondly, we have a minimum wage in the UK and I think that’s a good thing. Obligatory volunteering is not volunteering, it’s unpaid work. Which is currently not legal and I’m glad because it’s exploitative. We do have community service as a punishment through the justice system but that’s also hard to manage - and it’s a punishment.

Compulsory service in the army poses all sorts of rather obvious ethical issues…

Overall, this sounds a hugely expensive, impractical and unethical scheme. That’s my view even though all of my family does a significant amount of volunteering.

Anyone who thinks the UK is that public spirited should check out people avoiding jury duty which is extremely important for society but people do not wish to do. And the hyper individualism we have has been promoted by the Conservative Party ever since the 80s. And people liked it very much when it suited. Now that generation are older they don’t like seeing young people expressing the same values they’ve passed down to them. A bit late to change it!

You cant have Child Benefit stop at 18 and then fine parents when their 18+ year old refuses to do it

It's a simple distraction designed to get people off talking about the important issues - how will the UK generate an income (e.g. goods and services), how will it tax people across the income spectrum, how will it fund the NHS, education, transport/infrastructure, social services, military, etc - don't fall for it by spending any time talking about it; it's not going to happen.

Well, for a start it would be better for society as a whole and not the just for the CVs of individuals that live in it if there was a return of funding to Sure start centres at one end to address the issue of children starting school lacking physical care and social skills, and youth centres at the other end able to provide targeted support to young people who are/feel disenfranchised.

Of course it would be great if people of any age felt that they had received from the state and wanted to pay that back. But the truth is we live in a polarised society and the pandemic has taught us that those running volunteer schemes are parasites, only in it to make money from community minded people who believe in free giving.

And it's not just about the foces, it Volunteering with fire, ambulance and police services as well

I will ask the same question that didnt get answered re. workfare

What about insurance?

I’m all for national service for people who’ve managed to retire early. Get some useful skills, be of service to one’s community etc, etc

So the young people out of work and education will need to be vetted and deemed safe to do these roles- this will cost more than the benefit gained.

They should just scrap unemployment benefits for this age range instead and incentivise work that way?

Yep Lets screw over the child free again. I remember doing workfare back in the 90s while a couple of mum friends on benefits didnt have to

Surely an actual war would be conducted by machines and tech now rather than thousands of teenage boys walking into their premature death row by row.

I already do more than this amount of volunteering. But what's being proposed is not real volunteering (in the sense of voluntarily giving up your time to benefit others)- it's not voluntary and it's going to have a net cost to the economy. A bunch of disaffected teens standing around counting the minutes until they can go home is really of no benefit to them or anyone else. The money would be better spent on education.

Some people just hate the young, I think.

Presumably they volunteer then or are in the army reserves?

Nah They just dont want to say workfare

Yes, the national citizen service was actually a good scheme which they cut because of the costs.

So their parents will be fined? Ah there you go. Two tier system in place, richer parents pay the fine so their kids can get on with education/work unencumbered, whilst the poor kids will have to do it.

Typical really.