HC Deb 04 July 1989 vol 156 cc104-5W
Mr. Brazier

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what impact competitive tendering for repairs has had and is expected to have on sailors' access to their families during periods when ships are undergoing repairs.

Mr. Neubert

I assume that my hon. Friend is referring to repairs undertaken away from the port at which the ship is normally based. We have had only one major experience of this so far with HMS Penelope (base port Portsmouth) being repaired at Southampton. It is thus too early to be definitive. A variety of circumstances could exist, and separation from families could be increased, but the following measures are designed to minimise it:

  1. (a) If naval married quarters are available in the area where the ship is being repaired families can, if the repairs are expected to take six months or more, take up residence with the husband at the repair location, thus maintaining family unity.
  2. (b) If the repair is likely to last more than 12 months, personnel would be eligible for assistance to sell or let their existing private property and purchase or rent a new house at the repair location. This, again, would maintain family unity.
  3. (c) In cases where a family move would not be appropriate, personnel are entitled, subject to certain conditions, to 24 free travel warrants per year. In addition, personnel who serve at sea accrue warrant credits of one free travel warrant for every two months' sea service. These warrants could also be used, in addition to the 24 mentioned above, for journeys home during the repair period. In addition, separation allowance may become payable, dependent on the distance between the man's home and the location of the refit.

Mr. Brazier

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps are being taken to reduce the problems of separation from families in the Royal Navy.

Mr. Neubert

Because of its seagoing commitments, some separation is inevitable in the Royal Navy. However, personnel who opt for "family mobility" are provided with a range of measures to assist in keeping the family together. These include:(a) the provision of naval married quarters in all the main port areas; (b) the introduction of a new home owners "mobility package" which provides for the reimbursement of certain expenses on sale and purchase of a private house, or alternatively for certain expenses incurred in letting or repossessing it; and (c) the payment of removal expenses and disturbance allowance; and the payment of boarding school allowance to provide continuity of education for children in the face of frequent parental moves.