Conscription poll shows areas where young most likely to refuse to fight - list

07 February 2024 , 16:40

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Almost half of under-45s would refuse if called up to the military, polling shows (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Almost half of under-45s would refuse to be conscripted into the military - even if led to being punished, a poll has found.

Just a quarter (27%) said they would sign up to fight if conscription was brought back. Some 47% said they’d refuse and take a penalty. The remainder said they did not know.

People who failed to enlist during the First World War and Second World War faced the threat of being jailed. The survey was carried out by More in Common after the Head of the Army General Sir Patrick Sanders suggested civilians should be ready to fight if there is a land war.

He said a “Citizen Army” could be used to significantly boost the size of the military, although No10 has insisted that signing up will be voluntary. It comes after a bombshell Defence Committee report warned the UK wouldn't be ready to fight an all-out war.

The poll found the area with the highest proportion of refuseniks was Wales where 59% said they refuse to be conscripted. Some 58% said they would refuse in the East of England, 54% in Yorkshire and Humber and 52% in North West England.

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South West England had just 35% who said they’d refuse to be conscripted, the lowest proportion, followed by Scotland on 41% and the West Midlands and East Midlands on 43%.

Luke Tryl, UK Director, More in Common told The Mirror: "For many young people the idea of mass conscription is confined to our distant national history. Our polling shows that there are generational and political splits between those more willing to join up and fight and others who would refuse if conscription was reintroduced now, which means a government would have to have very clear reasons that would unite those of fighting age if a forced call up was ever needed."

Among Gen Z respondents, aged from 18 to 24, 28% said they'd sign up and 45% would refuse. Three in 10 aged 25 to 34 said they'd sign up, while a quarter of 35 to 44 year olds would do the same. Just 18% of those aged from 45 to 54 said they'd accept a call to fight. During World War Two, conscription applied to men aged 18 to 41.

The research found 38% of men and 18% of women would sign up if the Government brought in compulsory service. But a majority were against bringing in conscription, with 59% saying fighting should be voluntary.

The issue is in sharp focus of Gen Sir Patrick raised the alarm about the size of the military. Last month he warned that increasing reserve forces alone "would not be enough" in the face of growing threats.

The Army currently has a professional force of around 73,000, down from approximately 100,000 in 2010. The all-party Commons Defence Committee warned at the weekend that the military is "constantly overstretched".

Chairman Sir Jeremy Quin said: “Our inquiry found that readiness for all-out, prolonged war has received insufficient attention and needs intense ongoing focus."

More in Common interviewed 3,094 adults online in Great Britain on January 26 to 31.