Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the oral Answer of the hon. Member for Canterbury on 24 November 2014, Official Report, column 633, on army reserve, how many people have dropped out of the reserve recruitment process as a result of the time taken to process applications since July 2013.

It is not possible to identify the number of Army Reserve candidates who withdraw from the process specifically as a result of the time taken to process applications. Candidates withdraw for a variety of reasons, such as changing their minds, taking up other opportunities or failing to be contactable by recruiters. They may also be deferred (such as for medical reasons) or pending (candidates choosing to put their applications on hold) for certain periods and re-enter the process at a later date.