Military conscription could return in the UK as fears grow that Russian President Vladimir Putin could escalate current conflicts. With UK support for Ukraine, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has been warned that Britain's defence and security could be targeted. The UK government last year told people to prepare for war on British soil.
Potential Punishments for Refusing Conscription
If tensions continue to escalate and a new global conflict breaks out, there are indications of what would occur if the UK went to war. In that event, the UK may have to enact conscription to boost its reserves, particularly given the army has shrunk to its smallest size since the early 19th century, with around 74,000 full-time personnel.
Speaking to the Daily Express, author and historian David Swift suggested the punishments that could be imposed on Brits if they don't answer the call for conscription. Mr Swift suggested that, rather than prison time, fines might be imposed on those who refuse to sign up.
He said: “I imagine it would be fines rather than imprisonment or anything like that, due to: 1. Lack of prison capacity. 2. Difficulty enforcing and lack of legitimacy and 3. That 'conscription', if introduced, would be very much focused around monetary reward.”
Public Opinion and Historical Context
A YouGov survey carried out on 3,044 people found that 38% of under-40s said they would refuse to serve in the armed forces if a new world war broke out, and 30% would not serve even if the UK faced ‘imminent invasion’. The same poll found that 72% supported women being conscripted as well as men.
In WW2, conscription began for men aged 20 to 22 in 1939, up to six months before the war broke out. But when war was declared, the age range was immediately widened to any man aged 18 to 41. The only men who weren't called up were those who were too unfit medically, or who worked in vital industries like baking, farming, and medicine, which were vital to the war effort.
