Military families across the East Midlands are set to benefit from a major overhaul of forces housing under new legislation announced by the Labour Government.
A new publicly owned Defence Housing Service will be placed into law through the Armed Forces Bill, marking the biggest renewal of military accommodation in a generation. The move will see 2,336 military homes across the East Midlands brought back into public ownership, reversing years of underinvestment and addressing longstanding concerns about poor-quality housing.
The new service is backed by Labour’s record £9bn Armed Forces Housing strategy to end the scandal of poor-quality military housing and build homes fit for heroes.
Toby Perkins, MP for Chesterfield, welcomed the announcement, saying, “Before the election, we promised to put service personnel and their families first, and that’s exactly what this Government is doing. Bringing military housing back into public ownership will deliver the biggest boost to forces accommodation in a generation. Alongside this, we are strengthening access to services and making sure our Armed Forces community gets the support and recognition it deserves.”
The Armed Forces Bill, introduced to Parliament this week, also delivers on a manifesto commitment to extend the Armed Forces Covenant for the first time across all areas of central government, devolved administrations, and local authorities. This will place a legal duty on public bodies to consider the unique needs of serving personnel, veterans and their families when delivering services such as healthcare, social care, and employment support.
The changes are expected to benefit around 2,200 serving personnel across the East Midlands, as well as 3,615 veterans in Chesterfield.
Defence Secretary, John Healey MP said “Our Armed Forces make extraordinary sacrifices to keep this country safe. In return, they deserve homes fit for their families and the support of a nation that proudly values their service. This Bill delivers rapidly on our commitment to renew the contract with those who serve.
Through this legislation, a new Defence Housing Service will drive the biggest improvement in forces accommodation for a generation, we will ensure reserve forces can step up when needed and we will extend legal protections so that every part of government considers the needs of our service personnel and their families.”