Today’s news blog looks at service family accommodation, reports of a deal to buy nine new aircraft and morale in the Royal Navy, as well as yesterday’s Trooping the Colour.
ARMY HOUSING
The Sunday Express reports that soldiers and their families are living in homes which are not fit for heroes. According to the article families claim they are still being forced to live in squalor by CarillionAmey, the private firm responsible for maintaining the properties. A dossier of more than 1,000 complaints about the service contractor has been compiled by Tory MP Anne-Marie Trevelyan and was reportedly shown to the newspaper.
The issue of service housing and its maintenance is of huge importance to the MOD and we have invested £660million in service housing over the last six years. Since April, the Government’s Decent Homes standard has been applied to service family accommodation (SFA) and no properties which fail to meet that standard are now allocated to personnel and their families. The vast majority of SFA is at or exceeds the Decent Homes standard and we have a rolling programme to improve the proportion further. Any families who remain in a home that falls below the standard are charged at a reduced rate and are able to request a move to an alternative property should they prefer to do so.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has also been very clear with CarillionAmey that their performance in maintaining SFA has to improve if they are to retain their contract. Since he delivered this message to senior executives of the company in a meeting earlier this year, the indications are that their performance has improved significantly. However, the MOD will continue to monitor the situation closely.
The Sunday Express did not approach the MOD for a comment on their story but our statement is below.
We recognise the importance of publicly provided accommodation to Armed Forces personnel and their families, and continue to look at ways we can improve standards of Service Family Accommodation and Service Living Accommodation. CarillionAmey has developed an aggressive plan to improve the quality of service to personnel and their families.
P8
The Mail on Sunday reports that the Defence Secretary will this week sign an agreement to buy nine Boeing P-8A maritime patrol aircraft for £2.25 billion. Our statement on this issue is below.
The MOD always strives to secure value for money for the taxpayer. Procuring the Boeing P-8A Poseidon through a Foreign Military Sales arrangement allows us to get the capability we need and in the timeline we want.
NAVY MORALE
The Sunday Mirror reports that the Royal Navy is facing a massive shortage of sailors as plummeting morale leads to up to 100 quitting the service every month. A Royal Navy statement is below.
Our sailors do a challenging job and that’s why this Government has done more than any before it to ensure their contribution is recognised. We enshrined the Armed Forces Covenant in law and have introduced a raft of measures to improve service life. The Royal Navy continues to meet all its Operational requirements.
TROOPING OF THE COLOUR
There is widespread coverage of yesterday’s Trooping of the Colour in celebration of the Queen’s 90th birthday, as well as the flypast of military aircraft afterwards.
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