The Traitors champion Harry Clark has declared that bringing back national service would be a "great idea," arguing it could give young people purpose and reduce crime. Speaking on the Storm and Alexis show on Channel 5, Clark, who previously served as a British Army engineer for six years, championed the military as a source of discipline and opportunity.
Clark's Military Background and Views on National Service
Clark, who won the second series of the BBC reality show by double-crossing his loyal companion Mollie Pearce to claim the £95,150 jackpot, drew on his own experience as an aeronautical engineer working on helicopters. He said: "I don't see any negative with bringing back the national service. I think it's a great idea. There's a massive misconception with the Army – it doesn't mean we're going to take our kids, send them away to war, and they're going to shoot guns and be shot at and maybe die."
He emphasized that the military "teaches you so many things" and could address social issues. Clark continued: "I think what we have today, especially in London, is young teenagers getting into crime because they feel like they have no purpose. The military can give them that purpose."
Broader Benefits Beyond Military Service
Clark suggested that national service could extend beyond the military to include community service. "On the wider aspects of things, national service can be so much broader. It doesn't mean just going to the military, it could be community service. What you're doing is installing discipline into these young kids, and they can take that on for their life forever," he said.
Reflecting on his time in the Army, Clark noted: "When I was in the military, the main thing I realised was that people were lost, or they had no-one else outside the military. The military then became their family. I can promise you, if these kids go to the military and just spend a year there, and they learn how to make their bed, firstly, they're going to be better off as young adults when they're coming out. But secondly, I can promise you, probably 50 to 60% of them will want to stay on in the military and learn more because you can get multiple trades, and you can travel the world."
Ongoing Debate Over National Service Revival
Clark's remarks come amid a continuing debate over the revival of national service in the UK, which revolves around proposals to make either military or civilian community service compulsory for 18-year-olds. Britain's original national service was introduced in 1949, requiring physically fit males aged between 17 and 21 to complete 18 months in the armed forces, before being scrapped in 1960. At present, conscription remains obligatory across several European nations, including Greece, Latvia, Sweden, Norway and Croatia – the latter of which reintroduced national service earlier this year for the first time since 2008.
