A retired Australian Army chief has raised concerns over the Defence Force’s waning troop numbers, fearing an understaffed service could jeopardise security.
Lieutenant General Peter Leahy warned that the current ADF strength of about 58,000 is insufficient to adequately defend the nation.
The defence force recruits little more than 5,000 new members annually, but insiders believe it must climb to 9,000 yearly to meet demand.
A protracted shortfall could mean Australia is required to enforce conscription in the case of an invasion or significant overseas conflict, Lt Gen Leahy said.
‘(Conscription) is there if there is an emergency, but it has never been popular in Australia with the military and public,’ he told Seven News.
‘We should be encouraging people to join and developing a positive attitude to service, rather than forcing them.’
Compulsory enlistment for peacetime service was abolished in 1972 amid mass protests against Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War.
Lt. Gen Leahy, along with the RSL Defence and National Security Committee, which he leads, has proposed several changes to the Defence Force aimed at attracting more recruits.
Lieutenant General Peter Leahy warned conscription is ‘not popular’ but ‘available’ amid waning ADF sign ups
Lt Gen Leahy said the ADF should sweeten the deal for young recruits with a lookalike GI Bill for service people
They want Australia to copy the GI Bill in the US, which sees service members provided with tertiary and vocational training upon leaving the ADF.
They are also proposing a return of the Ready Reserve Scheme for fresh school leavers.
The scheme gave young Australians a year of full-time training before they proceeded to tertiary or vocational training – required to serve 50 days a year in the Ready Reserves unit for four years after.
‘While the mechanics of recruiting are being improved, it is uncertain whether this will be enough to achieve the targets and guarantee our ability to field new capabilities and operate them on future battlefields,’ Lt Gen Leahy told The Australian.
‘There is something else at play. Surveys such as the Scanlon 2023 Social Cohesion Report identified a declining sense of pride and belonging in Australia. It also reported a declining trust in the government.
Lt Gen Leahy said military service commercials miss the key attributes of military service’s appeal
Researchers said cultural factors are more likely to influence Gen Z’s willingness to serve
‘Military service is about purpose, values and loyalty. It is about service and sacrifice, and contributing to something bigger than yourself. It is also about fighting and the application of lethal force on the battlefield. ADF recruiting commercials are muted on this nature of military service.’
He feared recruitment commercials focused too much on what service could do for recruits and not enough on what recruits could do for their country.
He also suggested the recruitment under an amalgamated ‘ADF’ title meant there was little for recruits to identify with.
He said historically recruits feel a stronger connection to their service by joining an individual branch of the defence force such as the Royal Australian Air Force.
Academics Robert Hoffmann and Maria Beamond outlined two reasons for the recruitment impasse in a piece for the Conversation last year.
‘One is economic – low unemployment and a perception of better opportunities, work conditions and future prospects in the private sector,’ they wrote.
‘The other reason is cultural: a declining willingness of Gen Z to identify with – and fight to defend – their nation.
‘Many of the proposals to raise military recruitment in Australia are general. The government recently raised pay and bonuses in the defence force, for example.
‘Other measures include making the recruitment process easier, making military service an opt-out system, reducing medical requirements, or increasing the maximum recruitment age and galvanising junior military leaders to change outdated traditions that harm recruitment.’
But the researchers suggested building a force that ‘appeals to younger generations’ social values’ was the best way forward.
‘Our own and other research suggests Gen Z is strongly motivated by things that support their own growth and wellbeing, both materially and spiritually, rather than service toward others.’
