§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of the report of the working party report on service accommodation requirements.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonNo. The Government's conclusions on the recommendations of the task force on service housing will be made public by announcements in the usual way.
§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service married quarters he plans to make available for purchase by members of the armed forces; and where they are located.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonAll surplus married quarters which are suitable for individual sale are normally offered for sale to service personnel through the services' discount scheme in the first instance. Those currently being offered for sale include properties in Exmouth, Devizes, Kirkudbright, Edinburgh, Barton Stacey, Gosport, Peterhead, Ripon, Lower Quinton, Uckfield, Southend, Chatham, Forres, Ely, Folkestone, Portsmouth and Plymouth.
§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discount will be offered to service personnel wishing to buy their service married quarters.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonService personnel purchasing surplus married quarters through the services' discount scheme are given a 30 per cent. discount.
§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service married quarters are currently vacant; and where they are located.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonAs at 30 September 1991, the latest date for which figures are available, 9,834 service married quarters were vacant.
The regional breakdown is as follows:
97W
Region Total vacant Northern 98 Yorkshire 731 East Midlands 745 East Anglia 622 South East 3,604 South West 1,659 West Midlands 289 North West 121 Wales 273
Region Total vacant Scotland 1,191 Northern Ireland 501 Total 9,834 Many of these properties were either undergoing or awaiting major works or modernisation, some were already allotted to service families who were due to move in shortly, and others were being considered for disposal. In addition, 1,613 houses were in the process of being sold.
§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether service personnel leaving the armed forces will have the same right to purchase their service married quarters as those continuing in the services.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonService personnel in general do not have a right to purchase their service married quarters. There is, however, a scheme under which service personnel may apply to purchase surplus vacant married quarters at a discount. We are examining the scope for giving personnel who will be made redundant a degree of priority under this discount scheme.
§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of service personnel are married; and what proportion live in service married quarters.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonApproximately 52 per cent. of service personnel are married and approximately 20 per cent. of service personnel live in service married quarters.
§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service married quarters he is planning to make available to housing associations; for how long they will be made available; whether the housing associations will be charged; and where the properties are located.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonDiscussions with housing associations are continuing. It is too soon to provide details of any scheme that may be adopted.