§ Patrick MercerTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the opening of a new campus at the Army Foundation College in Harrogate. [85655]
§ Dr. MoonieThe new Army Foundation College buildings at Harrogate were formally opened on 18 October by HRH Prince Andrew CVO ADC. These new facilities have been delivered through a Private Finance Initiative by Defence Training Services Limited working with the Ministry of Defence in a 30-year contract. The college was originally opened in September 1998 and occupied the existing buildings of the old Army Apprentices College for the Royal Signals, which closed in 1996. The college remained open throughout the building period and now provides training and education facilities for 1,344 young people each year, in the most modern facilities available.