The recruitment firm in charge of hiring for the army has been accused of leaving the UK with a soldier shortage due to its alleged “incompetence”.
The Mirror reports that the Army have been left with a deficit of approximately 2,000 soldiers. Capita, the hiring firm in charge, are said to have paid millions of pounds in recruitment penalties to the Ministry of Defence in 2015.
A source close to Capita said: “Capita has failed to meet Army recruitment requirements and it couldn’t come at a worse time. The truth is we don’t have enough soldiers to deal with the current terror crisis.”
Former Commander of British forces in Afghanistan Colonel Richard Kemp has called for Capita’s contract to end. He said he experienced “incompetence” when dealing with them and called their system “dysfunctional”.
Kemp said: “How many others have faced similar treatment and how many soldiers have been lost to the Army? It’s time for the MoD to stop any further degradation of our country’s ability to defend itself. ”
According to the Mirror, a Capita source said: “Capita is not responsible for replacing those who leave, simply to reach certain levels of intake.”
Capita added: “Capita is committed to supporting the MoD’s plans for an Army of 82,000 by 2020, and has made significant improvements to the recruitment process making it easier and quicker to join.”
