SUICIDES of men serving in the armed forces have risen over the last five years, Ministry of Defence data shows.

Figures released yesterday showed there were 306 suicides among regular armed forces personnel between 2000 and 2019, involving 288 men and 18 women.

While there were 61 suicides in the armed forces between 2010 and 2014, between 2015 and 2019 there have been 63 deaths confirmed as suicides across all three services.

There are also a potential 11 additional deaths that are awaiting verdicts from a coroner.

Eight deaths occurred in the Royal Air Force, nine were in the Royal Navy or Marines and 46 of the suicides were by serving Army personnel between 2015 and 2019.

In 2019 alone there were 10 confirmed suicides, with a further eight that may result in a suicide verdict once inquests are held.

If verdicts of suicide are given to these cases and an additional three from 2018, this would lead to the highest figures since 2012.

The figures note that classification of suicide was changed for coroners in England and Wales in 2018, changing the standard needed to give a ruling of suicide from “beyond all reasonable doubt” to “on the balance of probabilities”.

It is also noted that suicides in the general population have risen as well.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) recorded 11.2 deaths from suicide per 100,000 people in 2018, up from 10.1 deaths per 100,000 in 2017.

This national rate increases to around 17 male deaths by suicide per 100,000, while across all three forces, the male suicide rate is eight per 100,000.

Prior to the recent five-year increase, the Ministry of Defence had seen declining numbers of suicides across the armed forces.

Earlier this month, defence minister Johnny Mercer admitted the Government has “not acted fast enough to update our data and understanding of military suicide”.