At least 45,000 personnel affected by MOD decision to pause controversial housing changes
About 45,000 personnel eligible for Service Family Accommodation under new housing plans will miss out, at least for now, after the Ministry of Defence (MOD) halted the proposed changes.
The controversial plans were paused just two weeks before they were due to come into effect, impacting 40,000 personnel in long-term relationships who were set to qualify for service family accommodation (SFA) for the first time.
Vice Admiral Phil Hally, Chief of Defence People, told MPs on the Defence Select Committee on Tuesday that a further 5,000 personnel with children who don't live permanently are also affected as the MOD conducts a review into the plans.
Under current rules, personnel with children who do not live with them on a full-time basis and personnel in long-term relationships but who are not married are not entitled to family homes.
The U-turn by the MOD comes after backlash from serving personnel and their families over the changes which focus on allocating service housing based on need not rank in a major shift from military traditions – as a result, the true number of those impacted by the pause is likely to be much higher.
One senior officer, speaking to Forces News anonymously, expressed concerns about SFA stock numbers, as the MOD is not building new homes to account for the increase in those who will be eligible if the rules do change.
He warned that personnel would "100%" leave the military due to the proposed changes.
Defence Procurement Minister James Cartlidge told the Defence Select Committee hearing on service accommodation: "We do not want to be in a position where we are losing personnel over this.
"The first thing to do was to put our hands up and say we have had this fierce reaction from an important cohort of people in our Armed Forces. We have acted on that, we have listened," he said.
"We now need to get on with this review."
Conservative MP Mark Francois, who sits on the Defence Select Committee, called the review of the plans a "victory for common sense".
The MOD announced it had paused the rollout of the Modernised Accommodation Offer on Monday – just two weeks before the changes were meant to come into effect on 11 March.
Under current rules, senior officers receive housing based on their rank, but the new rules will focus on the number of rooms required for any dependants.
This means junior ranks could be entitled to larger MOD housing stock, previously reserved for more senior ranks.
Changes relating to Single Living Accommodation, including help to get personnel on the property ladder, are going ahead.
The MOD says the Modernised Accommodation Offer will give the Armed Forces more choice in how they live, with a timescale for the review to be confirmed in the coming days.
Related topics
Join Our Newsletter
