First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon listens as Deputy First Minister John Swinney delivers the opening address to delegates at the Scottish National Party (SNP) conference at the SEC Centre in Glasgow - PA

SNP members have ignored the pleas of the party’s defence spokesman and voted to ban 16 and 17-year-olds from joining up to an independent Scotland’s armed forces.

Delegates at the Nationalists’ gathering in Glasgow voted overwhelmingly in favour of raising the minimum recruitment age from 16 to 18 following a debate in which the Ministry of Defence (MoD) was accused of targeting vulnerable youngsters from poor backgrounds.

The SNP’s youth branch, which tabled the motion, argued that joining up under the age of 18 increases the risk of death in combat, post-traumatic stress disorder and alcohol abuse.

Opponents of the change included Stewart McDonald, the Glasgow South MP and defence spokesman, but it was voted through with a “significant majority” in favour.

The debate took place after John Swinney, the Education Minister, used his opening speech to announce £20,000 bursaries for those who change careers to become science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) teachers.

In an attack on Ruth Davidson and Tory education policies, Mr Swinney said he would “will not be listening to right-wing, educationally ill-informed Twitter personalities who haven’t done their homework.”

However, it then emerged that the teacher bursary idea was included in the Scottish Conservative manifesto for last year’s Holyrood election. Ms Davidson tweeted that she "thought that post graduate teaching bursary idea was a good one - when we wrote it".

D'you know, I thought that post graduate teaching bursary idea was a good one. When we wrote it. In our 2016 manifesto. TeachFirst, too... pic.twitter.com/jsFsekvBQ7 — Ruth Davidson (@RuthDavidsonMSP) October 8, 2017

The military recruitment motion argued that a range of organisations including the Church of Scotland want the minimum age to be increased to 18. In addition to an independent Scotland adopting the policy, it urged the UK Government to “work towards” it.

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Rhiannan Spear, a Glasgow councillor who has close links with the SNP leadership, argued that the UK is the only EU and Nato country that recruits 16-year-olds and youngsters aged 15 could start the application process.

She told the conference that the MoD was deliberately targeting youngsters in low income households and accused the Army of using social media to target pupils during school exam time.

She added: “They are preying on 15, 16, 17-year-olds at their most vulnerable time.”

But opponents of the change argued recruits aged under 18 have not served in combat roles for the past decade and it was inconsistent the party’s policy that the voting age be 16.

Mr McDonald said he had considered joining up after leaving school aged 17 with one Higher and “that was my decision and it wasn’t anyone else’s.”

He said he was not defending the MoD, which he described as “the belly of the beast at Westminster” but the motion ignored issues around pay, equipment and housing.

Carol Monaghan, the SNP’s armed forces spokesman and Glasgow North West MP, argued that increasing the minimum age would deny opportunities to some youngsters.

The former teacher said she had a former pupil who claimed that joining the Army had prevented him ending up in Barlinnie prison.

Deputy First Minister of Scotland John Swinney delivers the opening address to delegates at the Scottish National Party (SNP) conference at the SEC Centre in Glasgow Credit: PA

Earlier, Mr Swinney told the conference that STEM subjects were "crucial not just to the education of our children but the future of our economy".

Amid an acute teacher shortage in some areas, with even a school in a middle-class area of Edinburgh appealing for parents’ help to teach maths, he said it was necessary to look beyond the traditional routes into the profession.

Unveiling the bursary plan, the Education Minister said: “We need to reach beyond recent graduates and attract people who have the appropriate subject degree but are working in business or industry.

"These 'career-changers' still need to go through initial teacher education before they can become teachers - we will never compromise on quality - but we can make it easier for them to make that career change.”