Soldiers are quitting the Armed Forces at an alarming rate, despite a pay rise over the summer.

The Telegraph reported on this.

For the first time on record, there are now just two servicemen or women per thousand people in Britain.

Some 15,119 left the Armed Forces in the year to October. Of these, 7,778 were counted as “voluntary outflow”, those choosing to leave of their own accord.

The forces recruited just over 12,000 personnel in the same period, resulting in a net shrinkage of the military.

Soldiers are leaving despite the Government’s attempt to stem the recruitment crisis with a 6% pay rise.

In July, the British Ministry of Defense announced the largest increase in salaries in 22 years and introduced additional payments to retain key personnel.

At the same time, military personnel remain the lowest paid category among civil servants.

A survey conducted among military personnel in May showed that the level of satisfaction with the basic rate of pay is the lowest in the history of observations.

Only 32% of respondents expressed satisfaction with their salary. It is important to note that the survey was conducted before the decision to increase salaries was made.

Staff shortage in the British army

In September, Militarnyi reported that the UK lowers requirements for joining the armed forces and will offer service to professional gamers.

It was reported that over 10 years, more than a million people had applied to join the armed forces, but three out of four refused to apply further due to a very confusing and complicated bureaucratic system.

There is a serious shortage of personnel in combat units, which is why only three out of more than 20 infantry battalions have manning levels of 70-80%.

In 2024, the Royal Navy recruited only 60% of the target. While the Army reached about 63%, and the Royal Air Force achieved the best result of 70% of the plan.

Moreover, in 2023-2024, there was a sharp drop in the number of recruits. For comparison, in 2021, the Royal Navy recruited 3,900 people, against a target of 4,410. And in 2024, only 2450 against a target of 4040.

The decline in the number of recruits comes amid a similar, albeit smaller, decline in the number of combat-ready personnel in the British Armed Forces.

In general, the total number of combat-ready military personnel in the armed forces decreased from 74966 in 2020 to 70290 in 2024.