Historian and author David Swift has suggested that if conscription were reintroduced in the UK, it would likely target unemployed graduates while exempting workers in defence industries and other key sectors. Speaking to the Mirror, Swift said that military conscription would focus on one specific age group, with exemptions for those in critical occupations needed to rebuild Britain's defence industrial capacity.
The comments come amid rising global tensions following US-Israeli strikes on Iran, which killed Iranian leader Ali Hosseini Khameini. Iran has retaliated with attacks across the Middle East, including strikes on Dubai, a popular destination for British holidaymakers and expats. Fears of the conflict escalating into World War Three have prompted discussions about the potential need for compulsory military service.
Conscription has been used only twice in the UK in the last 126 years: from 1916 to 1920 and from 1939 to 1960. Swift noted that any new conscription policy would likely be popular with many, particularly supporters of the Blue Labour faction behind Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
The warnings follow recent assessments that the British Army is at its weakest in over 70 years. Retired Army major and military historian Robert Lyman told the Express that the armed forces have not been so denuded of power since the Napoleonic wars. He emphasised that modern warfare still requires mass infantry, armour, and artillery, not just technology.
