Unemployed people who consistently turn down work should be conscripted, says Tory MP Richard Drax

Tory MP Richard Drax has proposed that repeatedly unemployed individuals who refuse job offers should be required to serve in the Armed Forces.

He suggests this could be a two-year service obligation for those who decline multiple employment opportunities. Furthermore, Drax has put forward the idea of offering criminals shorter prison sentences in exchange for military service.

He posits that mandatory service could instill a sense of duty and self-responsibility, particularly among the youth who engage in misconduct, like drunken violence.

These remarks align with concerns about the decreasing size of Britain's Army and reference the potential benefits of a "citizen army" as mentioned by General Sir Patrick Sanders.

Drax, who has advocated for the reinstatement of national service before, argues that this system could redirect funds from state dependency to promoting service and self-reliance. National service in the UK, which began during WWII, was phased out by the late 1950s.