July 17, 2012
Britain’s Defense Secretary Philip Hammond is outlining a major restructuring of the country’s armed forces as the military prepares to lose 20,000 soldiers.
The U.K. army is shrinking from 102,000 troops to 82,000 and losing 17 major units by the end of the decade. This smaller force has been dubbed “Army 2020.”
Under the new plans, the reduction in the regular Army would be offset by increases in part-time reservists and greater reliance on civilian contractors.