§ Mr. Wellbelovedasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will review the self-help married quarter internal decorations system in the Royal Air Force; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. PattieA review of the regulations governing self-help redecoration of RAF married quarters instituted by the hon. Member has been completed. He will be glad to hear that a more liberal policy is being introduced which should provide a sensible balance between the freedom of occupants to decorate their married quarters to their own taste and the avoidance of unnecessary expenditure. Applications for self-help will be considered sympathetically within published guidelines and a wider choice of colours will be available.
Some qualifications must remain: for instance, as a result of difficulties experienced in the current scheme, it is not intended to continue the loan of brushes or to provide materials other than paint. The trade union side of the DOE departmental joint industrial council has been consulted and has accepted the proposals, but has made it clear that if the operation of the scheme affects its members it reserves the right to raise the matter in the future.