Brits part of 'one major group' could be first to get drafted in event of WW3 conscription

Unemployed graduates would be the first to be conscripted if war were to break out, according to one historian.

Although we're unlikely to find ourselves embroiled in an all-out war anytime soon, Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine certainly brought the topic of military conflict back to Europe and into the minds of many of its inhabitants for the first time in a generation.

Add in Donald Trump's ongoing conflict with Iran and regular warnings about 72-hour survival kits and doomsday planes, and you can see why war is a concern for so many.

So what would happen in a scenario where conscription were to be introduced?

According to author and historian David Swift, out-of-work youngsters would be first up for military training.

Conscription is a topic which appears to crop up every couple of months (Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images)

Military conscription would target unemployed graduates," he told The Express back in March, adding: "This would be very popular with lots of people."

When it came to the people most likely to avoid the draft, Swift noted that workers in industrial and defence sectors would be safe, as these are necessary in a wartime economy.

"Today, since there is such an urgent need to rebuild Britain's defence industries and industrial capacity, I would expect that people in these important occupations would be exempt," he said, noting that some people may even be drafted in to work in these industries in order to meet demand.

According to established conscription rules, young, fit men would be the first group to be called up, followed by single people with no children, former soldiers and women.

The last group to be drafted would be older people, a scenario which occurred during the closing stages of World War II. Meanwhile, bakers, farmers, doctors, nurses and engineers are more likely to be safe from conscription as their jobs are closer to the food and healthcare industries.

According to one historian, unemployed graduates would be first up (Getty Stock Images)

Swift isn't the first person to muse about a scenario where Britain were to move onto a war footing, with British Army General Sir Patrick Sanders previously suggesting that the UK should move towards 'natural mobilisation' and create a 'citizen army' in order to be best prepared against external threats.

Is conscription in the UK likely?

According to the Ministry of Defence, there are currently 'no plans' to reintroduce military conscription, instead focusing on developing the existing armed forces.

“This Government has no plans to introduce conscription in the UK and believe the best way of defending our country is by maintaining professional Armed Forces who choose to serve," a spokesperson previously told LADbible.

Andy Burnham's recent visit to Ukraine and sharing of missile blueprints has sparked warnings from Russia (Henry Nicholls - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Recent warnings from Russia

The prospect of an all-out war across the continent remains unlikely. However, this hasn't stopped the Kremlin from making various threats towards the UK and its allies in recent weeks.

Following Andy Burnham's visit to Ukraine, which saw the Prime Minister share blueprints for long-range missiles, former deputy foreign minister Andrei Federov suggested this was evidence of Britain's 'direct military involvement' in the conflict.

Warning of a 'semi-military' response, Federov told BBC Newsnight that 'something might happen with enterprises, with factories which are producing drones for Ukraine'.

"They could be attacked not by Russia, but from unknown sources," he added.

Meanwhile, CIA chief John Ratcliffe has made headlines for his recent trip to Moscow. The reason for Ratcliffe's trip has not been revealed, however various reports suggest it was either related to Iran or a warning to Russia not to attack its neighbouring Baltic states.