§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many married quarters in each grade (1) in the UK are available to the Defence Housing Executive; and how many service families are entitled to quarters in each grade; [35645]
(2) overseas are available to the Defence Housing Executive; and how many service families are entitled to quarters in each grade. [35646]
§ Dr. MoonieMarried personnel in the armed forces are entitled to a quarter. The type of quarter (i.e. its size, design and number of rooms) to which a married service person is entitled is determined mainly by rank for officers and mainly by family size for other ranks. Family housing in mainland UK is managed by the Defence Housing Executive (DHE) whereas that in Northern Ireland and overseas is managed by the relevant service authorities. A breakdown by Type of the family housing stock is shown in the table.
Figures for numbers of entitled service families are not readily available in the form requested. However, many personnel do not take up their entitlement to family housing, preferring to buy their own. The DHE does not normally house entitled personnel in houses of a type below their entitlement: instead, additional houses are rented by the Ministry of Defence on an ad hoc basis where necessary to meet entitlement.