50 percent of all British servicemen want to quit

London, July 10 : Britain's campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan could face problems after it emerged that almost half of all military personnel are ready to quit.

A survey carried out by the British Defence Ministry to assess attitudes across the Armed Forces reveals unprecedented levels of concern over equipment, morale and pay.

It involved more than 24,000 military personnel.

It found that the sense of over commitment means that 47 per cent of soldiers and army officers think regularly of handing in their resignations.

Patrick Mercer, Conservative MP for Newark and a former commanding officer, said that the findings reflected the duress under which military personnel were operating.

The report highlights the pressures on the Armed Forces of enduring two medium-scale military campaigns simultaneously, says The Times.

The same sense of overstretch is reflected across all three Forces. Forty-five per cent of those questioned admitted they were not happy with the level of separation from family and friends.

The Regular Army is already 5,000 soldiers short and experienced young officers are leaving at an increasing rate.

The survey was carried out between July and October last year.

Vice-Admiral Peter Wilkinson, Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (personnel), said that 15,000 military personnel were committed to operational theatres in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Balkans in mid-2007, with a further 15,000 deployed on other military tasks around the world and in Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships.

The defence ministry says that the research had revealed "areas of concern", which will be addressed in due course.

ANI