§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he proposes any changes in the operations of the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Cardington and other activities on that site.
§ Mr. PattieFurther to my answer to my hon. Friend on 2 December 1981—[Vol. 14, c. 122]—review of certain of the activities at present undertaken at Royal Aircraft Establishment, Cardington, is continuing, and the scope of this review has been widened to include further options up to and including Royal Aircraft Establishment withdrawal.
§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether it is his policy that industrial gases should be made available to the Royal Air Force on a contracted-out basis or should continue to be supplied directly through the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Cardington.
§ Mr. PattieI believe my hon. Friend is referring to No. 217 Maintenance Unit, Royal Air Force, Cardington.
A study into the feasibility of transferring gas production and distribution from Royal Air Force, Cardington to a commercial organisation has been carried out withing the Department. Non-binding competitive tenders for these tasks will shortly be sought so that we can make comparisons between contractors' and in-Service costs for the level of service required.
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§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the acreage of land available at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Cardington, Bedfordshire; what percentages are allocated to the use of the services and to other uses; and whether he proposes to dispose of any part of the existing buildings and facilities, including the two very large hangars.
§ Mr. WigginThe total area of land at Cardington is 417 acres. Of this, 140 acres—34 per cent.—is the Royal Aircraft Establishment's site; 197 acres—47 per cent.—is allocated for other Defence purposes; 52 acres—12 per cent.—and 16 acres of the RAE site have been leased or made available wholly or partially for non-Defence purposes; and some 28 acres—7 per cent.—at the northeast of the establishment have recently been released for disposal. Further disposal possibilities will depend mainly on the outcome of a review of RAE and other activities at Cardington.