Oral Answers to Questions

Rachel Hopkins Excerpts

Monday 20th May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Sarah Edwards (Tamworth) (Lab)]

20. What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of service accommodation for armed forces personnel.

[Rachel Hopkins (Luton South) (Lab)]

23. What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of service accommodation for armed forces personnel.

[The Minister for Defence Procurement (James Cartlidge)]

Currently, around 96% of service family accommodation meets or exceeds the Government’s decent homes standard. Only these properties should be allocated to our families.

--- Later in debate ---

[James Cartlidge]

That is entirely why we are investing in our estate. I have mentioned the importance of the additional £400 million, and that is not abstract. It has enabled us to make a real difference to the accommodation of our armed forces by putting in thousands of treatments for damp and mould, and lots of homes are getting new doors, new boilers and so on. That is the difference the funding makes, and that is why our commitment to 2.5% is so important. It is not just about capability; it is about the homes of our armed forces personnel.

[Rachel Hopkins]

Last month, the landmark report into armed forces housing found that poor quality military accommodation had become

“a tax on the goodwill of service personnel and their families”.

Does the Minister agree?

[James Cartlidge]

The hon. Lady is welcome to send me a copy of that report, although I am not sure it is entirely impartial. I look forward to reading the conclusions—[Interruption.] Presumably it recognises that if we want better accommodation, we need to put the funding in, so I assume that its conclusions recommend that Labour commit to 2.5%.