Britons could be stripped of driving licences under Rishi Sunak's national service plan
Rishi Sunak suggested that driving licences could be taken away from young people if they refuse to do national service
PA
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has suggested that driving licences could be removed from Britons if they refuse to take part in the new national service plan.
As the General Election gets ever closer, party leaders are setting out the objectives of their campaigns to try and win voters over.
The Conservatives have confirmed its intention to reintroduce national service for 18-year-olds to help give young people the "opportunities they deserve".
Young people will be able to choose a competitive, full-time military placement over 12 months, or spend the equivalent of one weekend a month (25 days a year) volunteering for the community.
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Sunak said driving licences and access to finance could be used as sanctions
PASpeaking during a BBC Question Time special last night, Rishi Sunak was asked what the Government would do to ensure people took part in the new national service plan.
He responded that the Government would set up a Royal Commission to assess the models in place around the world and see which measures would work best for the UK.
Host Fiona Bruce pressured Sunak into hinting at what potential options were on the table for the Government to deal with people who refuse to take part in national service.
The Prime Minister said: "You'll have a set of sanctions and incentives and we'll look at the models that are existing around Europe and get the appropriate mix of those.
"There are a range of different options that exist. There's all sorts of things that people do across Europe, whether that's driving licences, other access to finance, all sorts of things."
Department for Transport data from 2021 found that around three million people between the ages of 16 and 25 in Great Britain hold a full driving licence.
This is a drop of around 350,000 compared to March 2020 and the lowest number of records since 2012, when there were 3.42 million full licence holders.
While these figures were impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and the cost of living crisis, millions of young people would be affected by the Prime Minister's national service plan.
Many on social media were also quick to challenge the Conservative plan to potentially take driving licences away from people who refused to take part in national service.
Some suggested that Sunak was "completely bonkers" for suggesting such measures, while others said "nothing good" is happening in the UK.
One X user said: "Saying people may lose driving licences if they refuse national service only demonstrates how messed up our approach to road safety is in the UK.
"Again treating loss of licence like some fundamental right. Nuts."
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Rishi Sunak responded to questions from voters last night on a BBC Question Time special
BBCSpeaking at the time of the national service announcement, Home Secretary James Cleverly confirmed that refusing the mandatory service would not lead to people being sent to prison.
He told Sky News that "there's going to be no criminal sanctions" related to the national service plan.