§ Mr. BattleTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals the Housing Corporation has to tackle the housing needs of personnel leaving the services.
§ Sir George YoungThe Housing Corporation has earmarked resources for 500 homes under its do-it-yourself shared ownership programme specifically for personnel leaving the services under "Options for Change". The corporation is also allocating funds, where appropriate, to individual housing associations for use in the sale or lease by the Ministry of Defence of surplus MoD housing, in return for nominations of ex-service personnel for tenancies. The corporation's programme of new homes for rent is targeted principally at meeting the needs of homeless people, and supports the role of local authorities in providing social housing, including their duties to households accepted as homeless under the Housing Act 1985, who may include service personnel. These measures complement a series of initiatives announced by MoD in 1992 to extend housing opportunities for service personnel.