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Message from Major General (Retired) S F N Lalor CB, TD – Chairman External Scrutiny Team.

“I am pleased to forward to you the External Scrutiny Team’s Statutory Annual Report 2021 on the state of the UK’s volunteer Reserve Forces.

I chair the External Scrutiny Team, which has been given the task of providing “… a report to be laid before Parliament, annually, on the overall ‘health’ of the Reserves …”.  This was as a result of a recommendation of the Future Reserves 2020 Independent Commission to review the UK’s Reserve Forces, which reported in July 2011, and formalised by an amendment to the Reserve Forces Act 1996 (RFA 96).   

The 2021 Report was passed to the Secretary of State (SofS) on 19 July 2021, but I was not able to send you a copy until the SofS has placed the Report in the Library of the House, which was on 26 May 2022.

Although, we are about to start writing the 2022 Report, which will passed to the SofS in July 2022 as we are mandated to do by RFA 96, I hope you will find 2021 Report interesting and informative particularly in light of the conclusions of the Integrated Review and the MOD’s Reserve Forces 2030 Review.  Both point to greater reliance on and use of the Reserve, which has seen much use in support the Government’s response to the pandemic, as well as other overseas operations.”