Britain is to help to train 10,000 extra Afghan soldiers to serve in Helmand to bring forward the date when British troops can be withdrawn from parts of the province and replaced by Afghanistan’s national army.

Under an Afghan-surge plan being discussed between Washington and London, British and American troops in Helmand would split the responsibility 50-50, taking part in an accelerated programme to boost the number of Afghan soldiers and police in the province to more than 17,000.

After the murder of five British soldiers by an Afghan policeman trained by Britain’s military instructors, a fast-track system to bring another 10,000 ANA (Afghan National Army) into Helmand could have inherent risks.

Major-General Jim Dutton, the British deputy commander of Nato’s International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, warned after the shooting in Nad-e Ali last week that similar incidents might occur.

The additional 10,000 Afghan troops being deployed to Helmand will receive basic training in Kabul military schools and then transfer to Helmand, where they will be partnered by British and American units. Under the partnering concept, British troops carry out both combat and training, as they did in Iraq.

However, concerns were expressed yesterday over the security implications for accelerating recruitment of Afghans for operations in Helmand.

Field Marshal Lord Inge, former Chief of the Defence Staff, said: “Who will be in charge of vetting all these new recruits? I hope we will have people sitting in on the vetting process. It’s also a hell of a lot of extra Afghans for British troops to take on.”

Gordon Brown has approved the deployment of an additional 500 troops to Afghanistan, bringing the total presence to 9,500, but it is understood that the Prime Minister has ruled out sending any more soldiers once the 9,500 total has been reached.

The Afghan surge plan for Helmand will provide Mr Brown with the chance to demonstrate during the lead-up to an election next year that he has started the first phase of an exit strategy from remote outposts, which would be handed over to the ANA.

Bob Ainsworth, the Defence Secretary, said in August that he envisaged British troops withdrawing from the front line “in a year or so”. His comment was criticised as unrealistic, but the Afghan surge proposal might help to meet the time frame he had in mind.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup, the Chief of the Defence Staff, said on Sunday, however, that he expected Britain to maintain a combat role in Afghanistan until 2014.

There are currently only 4,250 ANA soldiers serving in the province. In addition there are 2,800 Afghan National Police (ANP) officers. With the extra 10,000, there would be an ANA/ANP presence of 17,050, although there are also plans to boost the number of Afghan policemen.

The boost in Afghan soldiers in Helmand will be matched in other regions of Afghanistan. British officials said that approval was expected from Washington for the ANA to be increased from 94,000 to 135,000 before the end of next year. It is understood that President Obama will announce significant US troop enhancements for Afghanistan in a few days.

• Rifleman Philip Allen, 20, of the 2nd Battalion The Rifles, was named by the Ministry of Defence as the soldier killed by an improvised explosive device near Sangin in Helmand on Saturday. At the time of his death he was serving with A Company of the 4th Battalion The Rifles within the 3 Rifles battle group. His regiment had gone home after completing a six-month tour. He had remained “as continuity”, operating from Forward Operating Base (FOB) Inkerman.

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