The UK economy is set to receive a £1.8 billion boost when the Army returns from Germany, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond announced today.

Details of the investment in new bases and accommodation were set out in the basing plan, which clarifies for the first time the Army’s future UK locations.

Around 70 per cent of the Army will be brought back from Germany by the end of 2015 with the final 4,300 back by the end of 2019 – a move expected to eventually save £240 million a year. They will be based across the UK with major concentrations around Salisbury Plain, Edinburgh and Leuchars in Scotland, Catterick in North Yorkshire, Aldershot, Colchester, Stafford and the East Midlands. The new basing plan will make the best use of the Defence estate and provide better accommodation and facilities for our troops and their families.

The Government is investing £1.8 billion in the new basing plan and £1 billion of this will be spent on building brand new accommodation. This will see around 1,900 new family homes being built and more than 7,800 new rooms for single soldiers along with over 800 upgraded rooms for single soldiers and over 450 upgraded homes for families. The rest of the investment will be spent on technical infrastructure.

These changes will provide savings and efficiencies for the Army, a sustainable military footprint to support military operations and certainty for personnel and their families.

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said:

“By setting out our plans to bring troops back to the UK we are not only providing our Service personnel and their families with greater stability for their future but also generating a saving of around £240m a year in operational running costs.

“We are going to invest an additional £1.8 billion in our new basing plan, providing investment around the country, crucial jobs for local economies and the best possible accommodation for our soldiers and their families.

“This work also supports and enables the Army 2020 structure, announced last year, which will ensure that the British Army remains the most capable Army in its class, adaptable and ready to meet the security challenges of the next decade and beyond.”

General Sir Peter Wall, Chief of the General Staff, said:

“This announcement is very welcome news for the Army. The plan provides an excellent springboard for operations overseas and it affords welcome certainty over where people will live.”

Image By Harland Quarrington, Ministry of Defence (www.defenceimagery.mod.uk) Open Government Licence, via Wikimedia Commons

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Tags: british army, defence, News, philip hammond

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