§ Mr. CartwrightTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what proposals he has to replace the roof of the building now occupied by the air publications and forms store at Woolwich arsenal; and at what estimated cost;
(2) when the building now occupied by the air publications and forms store at Woolwich arsenal is expected to be vacated; and what new use will be found for it;
(3) what specialist refitting has been undertaken to the building now occupied by the air publications and forms store to provide for its present use; and at what cost;
(4) how many existing employees of the air publications and forms store at Woolwich arsenal will be offered the opportunity to transfer to the proposed new location in North Wales; and how many new staff will be recruited locally;
(5) what arrangements will be made to train new employees recruited for the air publications new location in north Wales;
(6) what is the estimated cost of transferring the air publications and forms store from Woolwich arsenal to north Wales.
§ Mr. NeubertConsultations have recently taken place with trades unions on a proposal to transfer all service forms and publications stores from their existing locations to create a centralised organisation at the former Royal134W naval store depot at Llangennech, Dyfed. Under that proposal, vacation of the building now occupied by the air publications and forms stores at Woolwich arsenal would be expected in 1991. Any further use of the building would be dependent on a future decision on the location of the directorate general of defence quality assurance.
As the hon. Member is aware, the original intention was to replace the roof of the air publications and forms store, which was to be a major undertaking estimated to cost in excess of £1.5 million. In the light of the Llangennech proposals, however, the work and expenditure involved could not be justified, although any essential repairs required in the intervening period would be carried out.
To provide for its present use, in 1968 the building now occupied by the air publications and forms store was installed with a Dexion three-tier racking system, including associated conveyor belts, an internal classified store, fitted with mobile racking, a conveyor system in the distribution area, and a fire detector and sprinkler system. In 1969 fans were incorporated into the existing heating system to ensure that adequate storage conditions could be maintained. Due to the length of time since the various works were undertaken, cost figures are not available.
Under the Llangennech proposal, careful consideration would be given to any individual request for transfer there from civil servants currently employed in the four existing stores. Nevertheless, it is expected that most of the 250 staff that would be required for the Llangennech operation would be recruited locally. A comprehensive training programme would be designed to meet the needs of all employees of the new organisation. The cost of centralisation at Llangennech is estimated to be about £5.7 million. It is not possible to say how much of this is attributable to the air publications and forms store alone.