§ Mr. Lesterasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give an up-to-date costing for the installation of replacement test facilities at Boughton and Bicester following the proposed closure of 38 REME workshop at Chilwell.
§ Mr. LeeBoth during the period of consultation with the work force and trade unions — following the announcement on 28 June of our proposals for restructuring the REME static workshops in the United Kingdom—and prior to that date, we were not in a position to make detailed surveys and seek tenders for resiting equipment and modifying existing workshop facilities. The published cost figure of £2½ million for moving equipments from Chilwell and Newark workshops and relocating or reproviding them at Bicester, Bovington, Donnington or Old Dalby workshops had therefore to be based on in-house estimating. We are now producing detailed costings as we are able to proceed with substantive planning. Although I would not expect these to vary significantly from the original estimate, my noble Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Armed Forces will write to my hon. Friend in due course to let him know the results.