Shamrock: your points are all good, but what I'm on about is not so much about systems or procedures (bad as those might be) but about the human factors of attitude, competence and GAFF.
Now: I am going to offend the decent, honorable and capable people who work in the recruiting system: sorry in advance, but I'm not talking about you.
My view when I was in the Army was that, very much unlike (let's say...) the USMC, the business of filling jobs in the CFRCs was not given much profile, despite occasional bursts of enthusiasm and rhetoric. There were, IMHO, far too many people (Class B or RegF: it's really immaterial) who should not have been employed within 100 miles of any recruiting centre. They were quite clearly "parked".
Now, you will immediately tell me that we can't fill all our jobs from the top 10% of the merit lists: got it. And I will tell you that if you are going to deal with the public in order to sustain an armed forces that is totally reliant on volunteer service, you better get the best people you can get in that job. You don't have to be a marksman or a really good bosun or a fighter ace: but you have to be able to deal effectively with people, to work hard, and to be flexible to deal with the needs of your "customer".
Oh, and don't lie to people. (My own CFRC interview contained "information" that, had I not already been an experienced Res NCO, I would not have recognized for what it was. I have heard so many similar stories from many soldiers over the years that I doubt it was just me).
I don't think that these systemic problems in the recruiting system are really all that new: they just seem to be getting uglier.