Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the shortfall was for the recruitment of reserve and regular soldiers and officers in (a) London Regiment, (b) Rifles, (c) Royal Gurkha Rifles, (d) Parachute Regiment, (e) Royal Irish Regiment, (f) Royal Welsh, (g) Mercian Regiment, (h) Yorkshire Regiment, (i) Royal Anglian Regiment, (j) Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, (k) Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, (l) Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, (m) Royal Regiment of Scotland, (n) Welsh Guards, (o) Irish Guards, (p) Scots Guards, (q) Coldstream Guards and (r) Grenadier Guards in the last 12 months.

The information is not held in the format requested as data at this organisational level is collected by Financial (FY), not calendar year.

Figures for FY 2016-17 will be available at the end of May 2017. I will write to the hon. Member then.

Regular Officer recruits are recruited into the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst without being allocated a Regiment or Corps.

Reserves are recruited against an annual overall requirement for new entrant enlistment.