The Telegraph
MoD faces exodus of young soldiers due to poor accommodation without hot water
The MPs faced an exodus of young soldiers due to poor accommodation without shower water for showers, MPs heard. Concerns about the Army’s single-family residence were raised by member of the House of Commons Mark Francois and former Cotswolds MP Geoffrey Clifton Brown, who questioned the quality of housing and the lack of available hot water. Mr. Francois told the Public Accounts Committee that soldiers regularly return from exercises without the possibility of holding hot showers afterwards due to ‘inadequate’ residences. Consequently, Mr. Francois said it “directly undermines our operational capability”. He said: “So many young soldiers and junior ranks are the main retention problem; leaving the army due to the poor quality of their accommodation. It is a decision in the round, but it is often an important decision for a number.” That means we are reducing the operational capability of those units. “Mr Francois added that if the government were to cut the army by 10,000, as recently revealed by The Telegraph, it was partly due to ‘the failure to retain people, partly because the accommodation in which they live is so poor and we do not “We call them heroes, and that’s them, but we do not treat them that way. He added: “It has real consequences for the defense of the kingdom.” Sir Stephen Lovegrove, the outgoing permanent secretary of the ministry, has insisted that this is an issue that the department takes seriously. Sir Stephen told the committee: “We are not at all satisfied with the quality of our single accommodation.” Meanwhile, Sir Stephen, who is leaving his post next month to become Boris Johnson’s national security adviser, also said that “sometimes Defense tends to be a bit of a stronghold of defense and I do not think it is useful for the country or for the country does not “. He said: “The more we can get out there, the more we can make a contribution, the better it will be.” Sir Stephen added that Defense also ‘must continue with deep integration of defense into Whitehall and British life’. Asked about possible cuts to the military, he said: “Our focus is to provide the best, safest and deadliest equipment to our soldiers in our armored division to do the job they know they need to do and we have to do so. to do so, it’s the guiding principle behind any decisions we make about armor, heavy, medium or light. ” A spokesman for the MOD said: we do, and it is only right that it be provided with good quality and affordable accommodation. “We have invested £ 1.2 billion in the construction and upgrading of our accommodation over the past decade and continue to invest in a range of new buildings and refurbishment projects.”