More foreign recruits sign up for British army

The number of foreign recruits to the Army has risen from 30 to more than 1,400 in seven years, figures suggest.

Annual figures for the period from 2001 to 2009 show the numbers jumped from 100 in 2005/06 to 800 the next year.

Plaid Cymru's Leanne Wood, who obtained them through a Freedom of Information request, said they showed the Army was "being extended beyond its means".

The MoD said it was "proud to recruit high-quality people from countries with close ties to Britain".

Anyone from outside the UK wishing to sign up must be a British dual national, a citizen of the Irish Republic or from a Commonwealth country.

The statistics show 1,420 people from overseas joined the Army in 2008/09, compared to 30 in 2001/02.

Foreign recruitment increased from 60 to 100 in 2005/06, leapt to 800 the following year and reached 1,160 in 2007/08. There were 950 foreign recruits last year.

Ms Wood, a member of the Welsh Assembly, said of the figures: "This paints a picture of an army being extended beyond its means with the war in Iraq initially, and then the conflict in Afghanistan which has escalated out of control in recent years.

"Plaid Cymru consistently opposed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan from the very start and we maintain that troops should be brought home."

The forthcoming strategic defence review, she added, was an opportunity for a reassessment of the UK's role in world affairs.

An MoD spokesman said: "The British army wants the best personnel in its ranks and it is proud to recruit high-quality people from countries with close historical and political ties to Britain.

"The Army will continue to ensure that it has the right calibre of people in order to maintain operational effectiveness."

Across all the armed forces, the most recent figures show that, on 1 April 2009, there were 173,920 full-time personnel - short of full-strength by 4,940.

Anyone from outside the UK wishing to sign up must be a British dual national, a citizen of the Irish Republic or from a Commonwealth country.

That's not strictly true. My German grandfather was an honorary Commodore in the RAF (later Air Marshall). My 100% Dutch dad was a honorary Major in the Royal Army Medical Corps. (He was offered a much higher rank but turned it down). Bizarrely he is not allowed to discuss anything with me as I have never signed the British Official Secrets Act! I was also the first to reveal on the internet that foreign nationals were serving with British special forces long before the government admitted to it officially.