Vote 15. Additional Married Quarters (Hansard, 10 March 1959)

§ Mr. Wingfield Digby
I hope that my hon. Friend the Civil Lord will be able to tell us something about the married quarters programme. It is noticeable that in the Estimates the amount of expenditure in the coming year—£900,000—is somewhat below that of recent years. The explanation is probably that one programme is coming to an end and another is beginning, because it is also noticeable that a new programme of £2 million is being started, although only £20,000 is to be spent on it in the coming year. The Committee might like to know where this money is to be spent. Is it to be devoted to further married quarters in the home ports, for example?
It is well known that in comparison with the other two Services. the Royal Navy is badly off for married quarters, because it started building them much later in the day. In the Army Estimates, however, a very large sum is devoted this year to the building of married quarters. I hope that my hon. Friend will be able to give us some assurance that this new programme will make good some of that disadvantage. Perhaps he may be able to indicate some of the places where the married quarters are to be built.

§ Mr. G. R. Howard
I should like to support what has been said by my hon. Friend the Member for Dorset, West (Mr. Wingfield Digby) about married quarters for the Service, because we all know that this is a serious problem, especially at air stations. In paragraph 3 on page 215 we read that Building is normally financed under the Acts only when the quarters are suitably sited and designed for civilian occupation in the event of their no longer being required by the Admiralty. I suppose that this would apply where naval air stations are closed down and are no longer required.
Does it mean that before being offered for sale privately in such cases the houses are offered to the other Services, or can they be disposed of at once? Secondly, are they then sold to local authorities or to private buyers?
I do not suppose that my hon. Friend can answer all these questions now, but perhaps he can give some indication and can give further information later. If the houses are sold to local authorities, how do the authorities pay for them?

§ Mr. T. G. D. Galbraith
My hon. Friend the Member for Dorset, West (Mr. Wingfield Digby) was concerned about what he thought was a decline in the married quarters programme. This year we are to spend slightly under f 1 million, which is a little lower than usual, but that is because the second housing loan is running out and the new loan has not begun. Building under the new loan is due to begin in 1960-61. This new programme, together with the number of houses built under previous programmes, should provide married quarters for about 25 per cent. of entitled officers and about 20 per cent. of entitled ratings.
I know that those figures may seem rather low, but we have discovered that sometimes people do not like living in married quarters, and we feel that it would be a mistake to reach the stage at which there were so many married quarters that we had to force people to live in them.
In addition to married quarters there are furnished hirings, which come under a separate Vote. Married quarters and furnished hirings together will eventually provide accommodation or housing for about one-third of the entitled people.
1191 My hon. Friend the Member for St. Ives (Mr. G. R. Howard) and my hon. Friend the Member for Dorset, West wanted to know where we should build the houses. In principle we shall build them in outlandish places like air stations, where there are no other houses. When we dispose of this property the normal practice is to offer it to the other Services and, if they do not want it, to offer it to the highest bidder.