Should 18 to 21-year-olds not in education, work or training have to do national service?
The UK has no compulsory national service or conscription: the armed forces are all-volunteer, and a defence minister restated in September 2026 that there are no current plans to change this. About 981,000 16-24-year-olds were not in education, employment or training in April-June 2026, 13% of that age group. The Conservatives proposed mandatory service for 18-year-olds in 2024 but lost that year's election, and the government instead promotes voluntary routes such as a military gap-year scheme for ages 18-25.
3 Opinions
This was discussed under Boris Johnson. The army were very clear - this wouldn't help in times of emergency and would make the professional army less operationally capable.
I’m sure it’ll be beneficial to some who are interested in it. I’m firmly anti-war and would be devastated to join the military. Ultimately it’s a stop-gap because there are no other meaningful employment opportunities in this country. Edited
A National Service option will teach valuable skills to those not in education, work or training