National service at the heart of Tory election focus on

Tories hope to make voters – particularly Reform supporters – nervous about prospect of major change under a Labour government

On the first weekend of the general election campaign, Rishi Sunak unveiled his first headline-grabbing policy promise: introducing mandatory national service for teenagers.

The proposal – wherby 18-year-olds would either join the military for 12 months or volunteer at weekends – sparked incredulity and ridicule. But Tory strategists introduced it for a very specific reason – one that goes to the heart of their election strategy.