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<p>The Government is committed to maintaining the overall size of the Armed Forces.
The Armed Forces continue to meet all their current commitments, keeping the country
and its interests safe. They are fully funded to meet their target strength and we
continue to increase funding to Defence year on year.</p><p>The Armed Forces have
active and targeted recruitment campaigns which are proving effective; intake to the
UK Regular Armed Forces was 13,520 in the 12 months to 1 July 2019, an increase of
13.4% compared with the same period in 2018.</p><p>Outflow from the Regular Armed
Forces was 14,880 in the 12 months to July 2019, remaining constant with the same
period last year. However, we are not complacent; we closely monitor the impact of
Service life on individuals, particularly in areas where there are shortages. Each
Service has developed plans to manage this and the proportion of personnel who breach
their Service harmony guidelines has reduced across all Services and ranks for the
last five years, reflecting the innovative approaches and pro-active management of
this issue.</p>
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