Forces told they must make savings

The armed forces cannot be exempt from the public spending cuts, the Ministry of Defence’s top civil servant said yesterday, amid claims that almost 80 per cent of soldiers had considered leaving the Army because of financial difficulties.

Ursula Brennan, the permanent under-secretary at the MoD, acknowledged that it was a “tough message” to get across, but insisted that the forces continued to offer good levels of pay and allowances.

Her comments came as the Army Families Federation (AFF) said a poll of between 1,200 and 1,500 troops and their families found that 78 per cent had felt like quitting the service.

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The Royal British Legion has accused Ministers of backtracking on a commitment to enshrine in law the military covenant which sets out the nation’s obligations to its service men and women.

Giving evidence to the Commons Defence Committee, Ms Brennan said that the forces needed to understand the broader economic situation in which the Government was operating. Its top priority was to resolve the fiscal problems.

“One thing that the armed forces need to do is to recognise that they cannot be exempt from that broader picture. That is a tough message that one needs to get across sometimes.”

AFF chief executive Julie McCarthy said unless the Army was able to retain the support of families, many troops would leave.