Question follow-through · 18423
Armed Forces: Discharges
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on the reasons why staff leave the armed forces; and what the most common reasons are.
About this written question
A written question asks a government minister for information in writing. Parliament publishes the question and any answer.
- Answering body
- Ministry of Defence
- Tabled
- 6 Dec 2024
- Target answer date
- 16 Dec 2024
- Answer
- 16 Dec 2024 · 10 calendar days after tabling
Elapsed calendar days describe the record timeline, not whether Parliament considers an answer on time.
More questions by this MP on Defence and foreign affairs
- Armed Forces: Separated People · 9 Dec 2024
- Armed Forces: Working Conditions · 9 Dec 2024
- Reserve Forces: Older People · 2 Jun 2025
- Reserve Forces: Retirement · 2 Jun 2025
Shared topic keywords suggest a connection; they do not establish a follow-up.
Votes on this topic
- Opposition Day Motion: Defence spending and readiness - Prime Minister's Amendment · 23 Jun 2026
- Opposition day: Defence spending and readiness · 23 Jun 2026
- Armed Forces Bill Report Stage: Amendment 11 · 22 Jun 2026
These Commons divisions share a topic label. The question did not necessarily lead to a vote.
Recorded timeline
6 Dec 2024
Question tabled
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on the reasons why staff leave the armed forces; and what the most common reasons are.
16 Dec 2024
Target answer date
Date supplied by the official written-questions record.
16 Dec 2024
Answer published
The number of people who have left the Armed Forces within the last five years can be found in the table below, and was extracted from the quarterly Service Personal Statistics 2024 on gov.uk at the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/...
Official data retrieved 27 Sept 2026.
Later records
Possible follow-up questions
Strong links require the same MP, department and exact heading. Other same-department questions are shown as unreviewed candidates, not as confirmed follow-ups. No debate link is asserted unless a stable source relationship exists.
Armed Forces: Separated People
9 Dec 2024 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to support Armed Forces personnel with children when there is a breakdown in family arrangements.
Armed Forces: Working Conditions
9 Dec 2024 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of working conditions in the Armed Forces on the (a) mental health and (b) familial relations of Armed Forces personnel.
Reserve Forces: Older People
2 Jun 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many reservists are aged between 55 and 60; and how many will be 60 in the next 12 months.
Reserve Forces: Retirement
2 Jun 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of raising the retirement age of reservists from 60 to 65.