Jeremy Clarkson calls for teenagers to work on farms instead of doing 'idiotic' national service
- The Clarkson's Farm star, 64, said he would pay teens to carry out the labour
Jeremy Clarkson has called for teenagers to be sent to work on farms rather than being forced to carry out 'idiotic' national service.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak unveiled radical plans in an article for The Mail on Sunday at the weekend to bring back national service for 18-year-olds.
The premier said the policy, which will see teenagers forced to either sign up to the military or cyber defence force, or undertake unpaid community work, would make society 'more cohesive' and strengthen the UK's defence.
Former Top Gear presenter-turned-passionate-farming campaigner Clarkson, 64, branded Mr Sunak's plan as 'idiotic'.
Writing on X, formerly Twitter, he said: 'Here's an idea. Instead of national service, which is obviously idiotic, how about kids working on farms.'
Jeremy Clarkson has called for teenagers to be sent to work on farms rather than carry out 'idiotic' national service (Pictured here with Kaleb Cooper)
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak unveiled radical plans in an article for The Mail on Sunday at the weekend to bring back national service for 18-year-olds
Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Clarkson said: 'Here's an idea. Instead of national service, which is obviously idiotic, how about kids working on farms'
Clarkson has been an unlikely high-profile campaigner for farming ever since his show Clarkson's Farm launched on Amazon Prime.
He said he would pay for teens to carry out the labour at his Diddly Squat Farm in West Oxfordshire.
One social media user said they would happily come work on his farm, to which Clarkson replied: 'If you would work f***ing hard and be prepared to put your whole arm in a cow, and never moan, we'd take you.'
He also said those who want to work at his Diddly Squat Farm Shop just need to be 'bright, chatty, and fun' as 'we don't care about qualifications'.
Mr Sunak's bombshell plans blindsided many, including those in his own party, but they have been ridiculed by Labour as a 'gimmick'.
The Prime Minister said the 'reinvented' scheme would 'provide life-changing opportunities for our young people', and declared: 'As a father, I look forward to my own two daughters doing their National Service: I think they will find it a rewarding experience.'
He added: 'Being British is about more than just the queue you join at passport control.'
Mr Sunak said the 'reinvented' scheme would 'provide life-changing opportunities for our young people'
Dawn from Stoke (pictured holding the microphone) made attendees laugh after saying her sons have 'more brawn than brains'
Military roles in the proposed national service scheme will be 'very competitive and selective', Mr Sunak told the crowd
Mr Sunak said: 'This modern form of national service will mean that young people get the skills and the opportunities that they need which is going to serve them very well in life.
'It's going to foster a culture of service which is going to be incredibly powerful for making our society more cohesive and in a more uncertain and dangerous world it's going to strengthen our country's security and resilience.'
The £2.5billion manifesto pledge, which could see parents fined if their adult children fail to take part and members of the Royal Family told to sign up, prompted criticism as well as support from within Tory ranks.
Some party members questioned the logic of landing the Armed Forces with 'a bunch of yobbos' and 'unfit reluctant teenagers'.
And others threatened to move their support at the election to Reform UK because of the effect the policy could have on their own teenage children.
The remarks were made in a Conservative Party Facebook group that includes several serving MPs, though they were not among the critics speaking out.
Meanwhile Steve Baker, the Northern Ireland Minister, broke ranks today to suggest the policy unveiled at the weekend was 'sprung' on candidates with little or no warning.
Some former military chiefs have also criticised it, while Labour has branded it the 'teenage Dad's Army'.
But other ministers have spoken up in support of the measure.
Veterans Minister Johnny Mercer, a former soldier, said: 'Predictable reaction to the National Service policy from the usual quarters.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer branded it a 'teenage Dad's Army' in a speech
Steve Baker, the Northern Ireland Minister, broke ranks today to suggest the policy unveiled at the weekend was 'sprung' on candidates with little or no warning.
But other ministers have spoken up in support of the measure today. Veterans Minister Johnny Mercer, a former soldier, said: 'Anything that unites communities with a sense of service and awareness of what the other organisations do is great.'
'Anything that unites communities with a sense of service and awareness of what the other organisations do is great. And it gives pride and purpose and challenge to those that often feel most left behind.'
Today, one voter sparked hilarity when she told the Prime Minister her sons are 'more brawn than brains'.
The woman, introduced as Dawn from Stoke, made the joke as she pressed the Conservative leader on his recently announced plans to introduce mandatory national service.
Telling Mr Sunak her two sons are aged 20 and 29 - 'nearly 30' - she added: 'Without sounding disrespectful to them they're more brawn than brains.'
Her bold statement received raucous laughter at the event, with the Prime Minister telling her: 'Let's hope they're not watching!'
Dawn said: 'I've got two sons who would definitely have benefitted from this, but I wanted to know if that could be broadened to cover ex-convicts from prison perhaps.
'I think that some would benefit from the structure and the guidance, the rules that National Service provides.
Responding to Dawn, Mr Sunak said he is 'really excited' about the policy, which came to many as a shock announcement last weekend.
He said: 'I've been talking to a lot of people since the time I've had this job about what can we do to really transform out country for the better. For young people as you've said, doing something that really provides skills and opportunities is going to be really transformational for their lives.
'I believe service gives you purpose and I think it will be really brilliant for young people to have this rite of passage that they go through with everything that it teaches them and just keeps them out of trouble.'
Military roles in the proposed national service scheme will be 'very competitive and selective', he added.
