Army – British conservatives want to introduce compulsory year – politics

LONDON (dpa) – The Conservative government in Great Britain wants to introduce compulsory national service for under-18s if it wins the upcoming general election. In the future, young people will have to choose between a year of paid military service and unpaid weekend work for organizations such as the police, fire brigade or health system.

“This is about dealing with social segregation. Many young people live in a bubble within their communities,” British Home Secretary James Wise said in an interview on Sky News.

Commentators speculated that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's conservatives were targeting voters on the right of the political spectrum with the announcement. Elections will be held in Great Britain on July 4. Right-wing populist Reform UK is now in third place behind opposition Labor and the conservative Tories.

A Labor spokesman criticized it as a clumsy attempt to plug holes caused by military cuts in recent years.

In Germany, too, the debate about mandatory social time is recurring. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier is convinced. However, opinion on this is divided within the ruling parties.