Young Britons in desperate search of a job are increasingly signing up to the military, with the government looking to exploit a trend that could help address both its youth unemployment crisis and depleted armed forces.
A link is emerging between youth joblessness ¡ª now at the highest rate in over a decade ¡ª and applications being made to the forces. New data shows applications both for the Royal Navy and Air Force at their highest in more than five years, as 16% of 16 to 24-year-olds now hunt for work. Those for the Army have also increased in recent years.
In a video uploaded to social media by the Ministry of Defence in February, a young man explained why he signed up to the Navy. ¡°I started university in 2017 and then I finished during Covid: all the jobs stopped, graduate opportunities stopped so my application went into the Royal Marines,¡± the unnamed man said, also citing the travel and sporting opportunities as key drivers in his decision.
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