Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Housing for Armed Forces Personnel

Monday 15 May 2023 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Christian Wakeford asked about the adequacy of housing for armed forces personnel, highlighting poor conditions and unacceptability.
  • The Minister responded that over 936 million has been invested in family accommodation improvements over the last seven years, including 185 million in 2022-23.
  • The Minister offered to visit RAF Odiham to see the issues firsthand and discuss solutions with service families.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Christian Wakeford Lab Bury South
Defence Housing
Context

The MP is concerned about poor quality accommodation faced by service personnel, citing personal visits to bases where he observed cracks and mould in bedrooms. He references a previous urgent question on this issue.

Question

What recent assessment has been made of the adequacy of housing for armed forces personnel? Over the last couple of years, I have visited bases across the UK and spoken with servicemen and women who say accommodation is beyond poor. With cracks and mould in bedrooms, these conditions are unacceptable. The Minister addressed this issue on December 20th, so what has been done since then to improve this situation for service families?

Answer from James Cartlidge

We recognise that service personnel need good-quality accommodation. Investment is key, and over the last seven years, £936 million has been invested in family accommodation improvements, including £185 million in 2022-23 alone. We are committed to investing at least a further £1.8 billion over the next decade.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask about progress since December 20th was not addressed with concrete details or timelines.

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Q2 Christian Wakeford Lab Bury South
Defence Housing
Context

The MP invites the Minister to visit RAF Odiham in his constituency, where he says poor contractors have caused problems for service families.

Question

Will the Minister visit RAF Odiham in my constituency to see some of the issues first hand and discuss solutions with service families there?

Answer from James Cartlidge

I would be happy to visit, as this is a serious issue. I understand the challenges but emphasise that we are putting significant investment into resolving long-standing issues.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask about actions upon visiting RAF Odiham was not addressed with concrete commitments or timelines.

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Q3 Ranil Jayawardena Con
Defence Housing
Context

The MP highlights a Labour campaign to address poor housing conditions for armed forces. A veteran expressed feeling compelled to leave due to unfit living conditions.

Question

A member of the armed forces with over two decades of service described their house as 'unfit to live in', pushing them to consider leaving the Army. The Government could have addressed this issue but has not, leading to personnel leaving because of poor housing. Will this problem be fixed before the next election or will it be left for a future Labour government?

Answer from James Cartlidge

We have put significant investment into improving accommodation, and I emphasise that the maintenance backlog is down by 75%. The previous Labour government oversaw private finance initiative contracts for service properties which had a cost of £25,000 per home whether or not they were occupied.

Not addressed: The specific ask about actions before the next election was completely avoided by discussing past Labour policies.

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