A controversial Ministry of Defence plan to change housing allocations was shelved due to fears of losing “good people”, a minister revealed this week.
James Cartlidge, the minister in charge of defence procurement, admitted there had been “a lot of angst” over the scrapped plan, which would have seen personnel with families prioritised over higher-ranking officers when it came to providing accommodation.
The ‘New Accommodation Offer’ (NAO) plan had been poorly-received, especially among childless officers who would have lost out on the chance to move into larger houses.
The scheme had prompted fears of a mass exodus, with 78 per cent of officers surveyed indicating a successful implementation of the plan could push them to leave the forces altogether.
James Cartlidge addressed MPs at a Commons defence select committee on Tuesday
UK Parliament
Military families understandably backed the NAO, but an army wives’ petition requesting a review of the policy reached almost 20,000 signatures – and was ultimately successful.
Mere weeks before its intended rollout date in March, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps announced the U-turn, prompting celebration from campaigners.
At a Commons defence select committee session on Tuesday, Cartlidge acknowledged issues with the wider military estate, but said there was no “magic wand” to solve them.
He said: “We have the estate that we do and, as you’ve heard, there is this programme – it will take time.
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Cartlidge said: "We don’t want to be in a position where we’re losing personnel over this"
PA/UK Government
“Likewise, in single family accommodation, we have these issues we are addressing.
“There is a finite budget at the end of the day, even though we have increased it significantly.
“We know we need to do more; we do not want to lose good people. And that is why we took the decision overnight to pause and review.”
Cartlidge also noted reactions to the NAO, and told MPs: “We do care what the feedback is, we have listened, we’ve heard what people have said”.
He said: “There’s been a lot of angst that’s come out and we want to respond to that.
“We don’t want to be in a position where we’re losing personnel over this, we want to get the policy right.”
The MoD may have gone ahead with the plan had recruitment levels been sufficiently high – but record staffing slumps meant a controversial decision like this may have been too risky.
But Cartlidge rebuffed concerns – particularly those of MP Mark Francois, who has been a vocal critic of recent military recruitment woes – that the backpedal was related to staff shortages; people Cartlidge had met, he said, were leaving for other reasons.
