Armed Forces: Training
Defence
Angus Robertson (Moray, Scottish National Party)
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of a recruit completing Phase 2 and 3 training in the (a) Royal Armoured Corps (b) Infantry, (c) Army Air Corps, (d) Royal Artillery, (e) Royal Engineers, (f) Royal Signals, (g) Royal Logistic Corps, (h) Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, (i) Royal Army Medical Corps, (j) Adjutant General Corps, (k) Intelligence Corps and (l) Brigade of Gurkhas.
Nick Harvey (Minister of State (Armed Forces), Defence; North Devon, Liberal Democrat)
Training costs for Phase 2 trade training for soldiers within each Corps or Cap Badge varies considerably depending on the role they are training for (of which there are over 220 in the Army), the content of the training, the number of recruits, the length of the training and the pass rates on specific courses. The following table shows the estimated lowest and highest cost per soldier recruit for each Corps undertaking Phase 2 trade training, excluding additional costs such as housing, infrastructure and utility costs.
| Corps/Cap Badge | Estimated range of cost per soldier recruit for Phase 2 trade training |
| Royal Armoured Corps | £31,520 to £67,090 |
| Infantry—Phase 2 (includes Infantry Battle School) | £17,420 to £29,000 |
| Army Air Corps | (1)£128,700 |
| Royal Artillery | (1)£17,430 |
| Royal School of Military Engineers (Royal Engineers) | £24,220 to £81,870 |
| Royal Signals | £13,500 to £53,100 |
| Royal Logistics Corps | £3,820 to £33,340 |
| Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (includes the School of Electrical and Aeronautical Engineering and the School of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering) | £1,310 to £43,930 |
| Army Medical Corps | £28,000 to £87,000 |
| Adjutant General Corps | £13,500 to £52,720 |
| Intelligence Corps | £5,460 to £5,570 |
| 1 Single Phase 2 course | |
Soldier recruits from the Brigade of Gurkhas are subsumed into the appropriate Cap Badge training course, such as Infantry, Royals Engineers, Royal Logistics Corps or the Royal Signals, for Phase 2 training dependent on their job choice.
Information on the cost of Phase 3 career development training is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Once a soldier is fully trained (on completion of their Phase 1 and Phase 2 training), they continue to undertake training throughout their career, dependent on the individual soldier's career path and need. This career development training is varied and diverse and the costs of such training varies from person to person.