Ahead of the T2 redundancy announcement, the Independent's Defence Correspondent writes that the blueprint for shape of the army will be submitted to the Defence Secretary, Philip Hammond, in the next two months. The plan will reduce Regular Army numbers to 82,000, and a  number of historic regiments may be merged and bases more dispersed throughout the country.

Quoted in the newspaper, a senior officer involved in the SDSR process said "There will be a lot gnashing of teeth at the numbers being cut, but frankly we have no choice in the current economic circumstances, we have to take our share of pain."

• Independent story, by Kim Sengupta, 16 Jan 2012 - Sweeping troop cuts for army