Defence chiefs’ fears after Marine training schedule is slashed by eight weeks for commandos to save £2million – as they say it risks producing ‘raw’ recruits_Nhy
Desperate Navy chiefs are cutting eight weeks off the training schedule for commandos in a cash-saving move which risks producing ‘raw’ recruits.
The shortened programme, expected to begin in May, will see adventurous training such as rock climbing axed from the syllabus.
A four-week foundation block at the start of the course, intended to weed out weaker candidates, will also be ditched. And recruits will spend less time on the parade square learning to march and more time on ‘field skills’.
For decades, basic Royal Marine training, which recruits must pass to earn a green beret, has lasted 36 weeks – ten weeks longer than the Army’s infantry course.
Top brass justified the extended programme, which costs £120,000 per Marine, on the grounds they were being taught to a superior standard.
But as part of measures by cash-strapped defence officials, the Marines’ course is being brought closer into line with the Army.
According to Marine sources, it will save £28,000 per candidate – or £2 million over five years. The Marines’ officer course is also thought to be under review.
As part of its Don’t Leave Britain Defenceless campaign, the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday have previously revealed widespread cuts across the Army’s budgets since Labour took office.
Desperate Navy chiefs are cutting eight weeks off the training schedule for commandos in a cash-saving move. File image
For decades, basic Royal Marine training, which recruits must pass to earn a green beret, has lasted 36 weeks. File image
As part of measures by cash-strapped defence officials, the Marines’ course is being brought closer into line with the Army. File image
This has seen a drastic reduction in live firing exercises, due to the cost of ammunition and stocks being donated to Ukraine. Defence officials even considered clawing back a £13 million grant to the Chelsea Pensioners, before the Mail stepped in and they scrapped the plan.
A source at the Marines’ Commando Training Centre at Lympstone, Devon, said: ‘Many of the instructors here have serious concerns. The last thing we want is relatively raw recruits passing out and deploying to the frontline.
‘We’ve been assured this is a one-year trial, so if it doesn’t work we revert back to 36 weeks.’
Former Navy commander Rear Admiral Chris Parry, a Falklands War veteran, said last night: ‘The excellence of our Royal Marines relies on that level of training.’
A Marine officer added: ‘This will be a disaster. The course is long because it needs to be.’
The MoS has called repeatedly for defence spending to rise to 2.5 per cent of GDP. But Prime Minister Keir Starmer has refused to give assurances on delivering it.
Last night, the Royal Navy said no decisions had been made on any proposals, adding: ‘There will be no changes in the commando standards and the training will always remain among the most arduous and respected globally.’
