Questions around whether the royal family should be made to partake in National Service have arisen after Rishi Sunak announced plans to revive the scheme.
Prince George, Prince Louis, and Princess Charlotte will be expected to undertake the scheme when they turn 18.
With details confirming that there will be ‘very limited exceptions’ to get out of the service and that the young royals will not be exempt.
Today, senior minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said ‘the vast majority of our young people’ would be expected to turn out.
For the mandatory programme under Rishi Sunak’s new election proposal
It would see all 18-year-olds do either a paid year in the military or spend a weekend a month doing unpaid work in the community.
The manifesto pledge has ignited the first major row of the election campaign.
But speaking to Sky News about whether royals would be made to take part, Trevelyan said it would be down to a Royal Commission to decide the scope.
But she added: ‘Fundamentally the Prime Minister has been clear this would be for the vast majority of our young people, our 18 year-olds, this would be a mandatory part of both their continued education and journey to adulthood.’
Prince George, 10, will be the first young royal made to undertake the scheme when he turns 18 in July 2031, followed a year later by Princess Charlotte, nine, and three years later by Prince Louis, six.
Princess Beatrice and Eugenie also have young children who would be eligible to take part once they reach the age of 18, as well as Prince Edward’s son, the Earl of Wessex, 16.
Rishi Sunak made the first major policy announcement of the general election campaign on Sunday, vowing to bring back National Service for 18-year-olds – a scheme that has not been seen in the UK since 1960.
The Prime Minister received backlash after launching the proposal but said he wanted the change to instill a ‘shared sense of purpose’ in today’s youth.
The Royal family has a long history of serving in the military with Prince William a Sandhurst graduate before he spent seven-and-a-half years in full-time military service.
Prince George, 10, will be the first young royal made to undertake the scheme when he turns 18 in July 2031, followed a year later by Princess Charlotte, nine, and three years later by Prince Louis, six.
Princess Beatrice and Eugenie also have young children who would be eligible to take part once they reach the age of 18, as well as Prince Edward’s son, the Earl of Wessex, 16.
Rishi Sunak made the first major policy announcement of the general election campaign on Sunday, vowing to bring back National Service for 18-year-olds – a scheme that has not been seen in the UK since 1960.
The Prime Minister received backlash after launching the proposal but said he wanted the change to instill a ‘shared sense of purpose’ in today’s youth.
The Royal family has a long history of serving in the military with Prince William a Sandhurst graduate before he spent seven-and-a-half years in full-time military service.
He clarified details of the scheme saying the military part will be paid, but the voluntary section would not be.
The Tories also revealed plans on how they would encourage teenagers to apply for the military scheme, including participants being potentially favoured over other applicants when applying for jobs.
One of the options is the introduction of fast-tracked routes into graduate schemes and the civil service for those who have served.
Another is that employers are encouraged to consider Armed Forces recruits during the hiring process and that participants are given the opportunity to highlight their military experience on their UCAS applications for university and apprenticeships.
However, the Armed Forces option would be selective – with only around 30,000 placements for ‘the brightest and best’.
But some ex-top brass questioned its usefulness. Lord West, the former head of the Royal Navy who is a Labour peer, told the Guardian: ‘I’m delighted if more young people become aware of defence and are involved … but this idea is basically bonkers.
‘We need to spend more on defence, and – by doing what he’s suggesting – money will be sucked out of defence.’
And General Richard Dannatt, the former head of the General Staff, branded it ‘electoral opportunism’, adding: ‘The costs of this would be considerable in terms of trainers and infrastructure. This task cannot just be imposed on the Armed Forces as an extra thing to do.’
But a Labour Party spokesperson said the announcement was ‘another desperate £2.5billion unfunded commitment from a Tory Party which already crashed the economy, sending mortgages rocketing, and now they’re spoiling for more.
‘This is not a plan – it’s a review which could cost billions and is only needed because the Tories hollowed out the armed forces to their smallest size since Napoleon,’ the spokesperson said.
The Lib Dems have also slammed the announcement with leader Ed Davey describing it as a ‘desperate’ and ‘pathetic’ attempt.
In European nations with national service, members of the royal family are expected to take part.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway recently began her 12-month military placement with the Engineer Battalion.
Spain’s Crown Princess Leonor is undergoing three years of military training, although the country no longer has national service.
Studies from Norway and Israel, which have national military service schemes, suggest they give youngsters a ‘leg up’ into subsequent careers, the Tories said.
National service was abolished in 1960 with the last servicemen discharged in 1963.
According to the Royal British Legion, between the end of the Second World War and May 1963, more than two million men took part in national service.
Many countries across the world currently have some form of national service, including military and non-military models.
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Source: CNN
