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Defence in the UK

The hon. Gentleman knows that the money was raised by Help for Heroes and that they have now completed that fundraising. There is no reason from a finance point of view for any delay, and just the detailed work—such as that to do with regulations—and the construction work needs to go ahead in order to provide a swimming pool at Headley Court. The Government are providing £24 million to secure the development plan for Headley Court over a 10-year period, providing all the other rehabilitation facilities that are needed. I hope that the hon. Gentleman would agree that although people sometimes say that we should not rely on charity, it is important not only that we fund the facilities adequately as a Government through the taxpayer but that we attract and encourage charitable contributions. Help for Heroes has done an amazing job to fund the swimming pool at Headley Court. That organisation and others, such as the Royal British Legion and the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association, ought to be congratulated and nurtured. They ought to be helped to continue to make the fantastic contribution that they make. Accommodation was one of the issues addressed in the Command Paper, and I would be the first to admit that not all our accommodation is what it should be. After decades of under-investment in the defence estate, the Government have built or upgraded more than 29,000 units of single living accommodation since 2003 and upgraded nearly 13,000 service family homes since 2001. We will invest a further £8 billion in service accommodation over the next 10 years. In the Command Paper we also pledged to improve access to the property ladder for our people and for those leaving the forces, so I am pleased to tell the House that there is a team working on proposals to address those issues that will report by the end of the year. The Prime Minister has already announced a £20 million pilot scheme to promote home ownership, which is to be launched in 2009.