Military chiefs are fighting a desperate rearguard action to prevent the regular Army being cut to around 68,000 troops.

The Mail on Sunday can reveal the figure is less than the 72,500 previously touted by Defence Secretary Ben Wallace.

It would see the Army – which has struggled to take on recruits despite slick advertising campaigns costing millions – fall to its lowest levels for more than a century. 

The MoD's plans will be unveiled in the forthcoming Defence Command White Paper.

 Ex-Army officer Nick Drummond claimed the cuts would be 'disastrous in terms of generating a credible deployable force'.

But the Ministry of Defence insisted it would 'ensure the UK remains ready to deter adversaries'.