Armed Services Accommodation

Mr. Keetch
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent on renting private accommodation for armed services personnel (a) in the last financial year and (b) this financial year to date. [119394]

Mr. Caplin
The following figures show expenditure on substitute Service accommodation in Great Britain rented by the Ministry of Defence from the private sector when accommodation according to entitlement, within daily travelling distance from the work place, could not otherwise be provided for Service personnel and their families. ------------------------
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|Financial year 2002–03|
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|1 April to 31 May 2003|
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Roughly one third of the figures quoted is for family accommodation.

Mr. Keetch
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much (a) single living accommodation and (b) service family accommodation was empty in each month since July 2002; and if he will make a statement. [119395]

Mr. Caplin
The figures for empty single living accommodation are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.The approximate figures for vacant Service Family Accommodation (SFA) in mainland United Kingdom at the end of each month from July 2002 to May 2003 are as follows:
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|              |
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|July 2002     |
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|August 2002   |
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|September 2002|
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|October 2002  |
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|November 2002 |
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|December 2002 |
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|January 2003  |
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|February 2003 |
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|March 2003    |
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|April 2003    |
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|May 2003      |
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Since January 2000, some 12,000 surplus SFA have been released for disposal. The disposal programme will continue, but the numbers released are constrained by Service deployment uncertainties.