asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will take steps to ensure parity between the disturbance allowances paid to Service men and those paid to civil servants in similar circumstances.

No. Rates of disturbance allowance payable to married Service men, which vary according to family circumstances and which are reviewed annually, are based on principles established by the National Board for Prices and Incomes in 1969, which took cognisance of the difference between military and civilian conditions of service. These differences continue to apply.