Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, how the Armed Forces Commissioner will be involved in the two stage complaints process for service housing.

We are committed to listening to our people and we are establishing an Armed Forces Commissioner to act as a strong, independent champion for personnel and their families to improve Service life. The role of the Commissioner and the process for the investigation of complaints will be confirmed when the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill comes into force with the Armed Forces Commissioner Act.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, which company will provide the online portal for service personnel to manage repairs.

More reliable repairs, including a new online portal for Service personnel to manage repairs, is one of the seven commitments announced in the new Consumer Charter. The new online portal is currently in development and will go through user testing before release. The online portal will be made available to families this year. The online portal will be provided by Pinnacle Service Families – this is a commitment under the existing contract.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, when the online portal for service personnel to manage repairs will be available for use.

More reliable repairs, including a new online portal for Service personnel to manage repairs, is one of the seven commitments announced in the new Consumer Charter. The new online portal is currently in development and will go through user testing before release. The online portal will be made available to families this year. The online portal will be provided by Pinnacle Service Families – this is a commitment under the existing contract.

With reference to the press release entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, what steps he plans to take to help ensure that the New Consumer Charter for families in military homes will lead to higher move-in standards.

All families should be confident they are moving into a home that is clean and functional and we will continue to invest in preparing homes so that they are ready for families to move into. As part of this, we are introducing a more robust move in process, with greater assurances that all homes will be maintained, inspected, and prepared according to industry standards. The Defence Housing Strategy, to be published later this year, will set out wider plans to improve the standard of service family homes.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the size of the Army Cadet force.

The merits of the Army Cadet Force and the societal benefits of all Army cadets are well recognised, improving self-efficacy, enhancing ability to communicate, and strengthening physical and mental resilience leading to better employability prospects. Work is currently underway to understand opportunities for expansion across Ministry of Defence Cadets. Although it is too early to make an accurate assessment on projected numbers, I have directed that a review is carried out, closely aligned with the Strategic Defence Review, to determine how we can deliver more cadet activity and increase the size and offer of the Cadet Forces.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published 18 April 2025, what steps he is taking to ensure that families receive more reliable repairs to their homes through the New Consumer Charter.

A commitment to conduct urgent repairs and ensure issues are fixed and resolved first time and within a set timeline, has been set out in the Consumer Charter. Our repairs commitment will be consistent with legislation such as Awaab’s law. As set out in the announcement of the Consumer Charter on 18 April, further detail will be published as part of the Defence Housing Strategy later this year following consultation with Service families.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, when the satisfaction figures will be published.

As one of the seven commitments announced in the new Consumer Charter, new customer satisfaction measures are being developed to enhance accountability, giving Service families the confidence in the improvements being made. Details of these satisfaction measures, including when they will be published and how they will be collated, will be provided in the new Defence Housing Strategy due to be published later this year.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, what the cost is for implementing the online portal for service personnel to manage repairs.

More reliable repairs, including a new online portal for Service personnel to manage repairs, is one of the seven commitments announced in the new Consumer Charter. The new online portal is currently in development and will go through user testing before release. The online portal will be made available to families this year. The online portal will be provided by Pinnacle Service Families – this is a commitment under the existing contract.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, how the satisfaction figures will be collated; at what frequency; and by who.

As one of the seven commitments announced in the new Consumer Charter, new customer satisfaction measures are being developed to enhance accountability, giving Service families the confidence in the improvements being made. Details of these satisfaction measures, including when they will be published and how they will be collated, will be provided in the new Defence Housing Strategy due to be published later this year.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, what his Department's timetable is for publishing the Defence Housing Strategy.

The Defence Housing Strategy is planned for publication later this year. It will set out a roadmap to deliver a generational renewal of military accommodation; the projected costs of which are under review.

When he plans to publish the New Consumer Charter for families in military homes.

The New Consumer Charter is part of a new Defence Housing Strategy and will be published later this year.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, what steps his Department is taking to allocate a named housing officer for every family.

Better and clearer communication for Service families, including a named Housing Officer for every Service family who they can contact for specific housing related queries, is one of the seven commitments announced in the new Consumer Charter. Work is currently underway to review Housing Officer's duties, roles and responsibilities along with the current Housing Officer structure. A new Housing Officer Vision has been rolled out via recent Housing Officer workshops. Service families will know who their Housing Officer is and how to contact them, either by telephone and email, or through local initiatives (including housing surgeries, open offices, online consultations and coffee mornings, estate and community walks). Final detail will be set out in the Defence Housing Strategy following consultation with Military personnel and their families.

When he plans to publish the short-term action plan to enhance family homes.

We do not intend to publish a short-term action plan. In our new Consumer Charter, we announced seven commitments to immediately improve the lived experience for Service families: A strengthened move-in standardImproved, clearer information for families ahead of a moveMore reliable repairsRaising the minimum standard of military homes with a refurbishment of up to 1,000 of the worst homesBetter and clearer communication for families, including a named housing officer for every service familyA new, simpler complaints processModernising policies to allow more freedom for families to make improvements Service families will start to see early benefits including a named Housing Officer provided for every home, and £50 million to fund refurbishment works on 1,000 of the worst homes. The Defence Housing Strategy will be published later this year and will set out further long-term plans to improve the standard of Service family homes.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, what criteria his Department plans to use to decide which homes will be renovated under the New Consumer Charter.

A combination of factors will be considered when selecting Service Family homes for renovation under the new Consumer Charter. All homes will be assessed against factors including condition, thermal efficiency, age, safety, and modernity as well as whether the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has an enduring requirement for them; ensuring a geographical spread of investment across the UK; and a mixture of Officer and Other Rank properties. The Department will prioritise 1,000 of the worst homes, with renovation work starting at the beginning of Summer 2025 and being completed by the end of the year.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, what the total projected cost is of the new Defence Housing Strategy in each of the next five years.

The Defence Housing Strategy is planned for publication later this year. It will set out a roadmap to deliver a generational renewal of military accommodation; the projected costs of which are under review.

How many snowmobiles are (a) owned by his Department and (b) deployed overseas.

The Royal Marines are the Armed Forces’ Extreme Cold Weather experts and have a fleet of 184 snowmobiles, which are known as Over Snow Reconnaissance Vehicles. The Ministry of Defence does not routinely disclose a breakdown of the location of equipment capabilities, or the operational readiness of our fleet, in the interests of safeguarding security and operational effectiveness.

How many personnel the National Cyber Force has.

The National Cyber Force does not comment on detailed figures regarding staff numbers for national security reasons, though there is a roughly equal share of personnel from Defence and the UK intelligence community.

With reference to the press notice entitled Homes fit for heroes: Raft of new measures to improve military family housing, published on 18 April 2025, what steps he is taking to encourage the development of surplus military land.

Ministry of Defence (MOD) works closely with Local Authorities to secure alternative development for sites post military use, this includes securing allocations in Local Plans, public consultation as part of master planning, and where appropriate working with development partners. the MOD is also working in partnership with Homes England to accelerate the release of public land. The Government has set out its ambitions to unlock thousands of new homes on surplus defence land, including via the creation of a new taskforce between MOD, HM Treasury and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

How much surplus military land has been allocated to development in local plans.

C. 1,240 hectares of Ministry of Defence (MOD) land has been allocated to development in local plans in England, with the MOD continuing to work with over 17 local authorities on the future use of surplus military land in local plans.

Which branches of the armed forces use the L110A2 Light Machine Gun.

The L110A2 Light Machine Gun remains in limited use by the UK Armed Forces. However, for reasons of operational security I cannot provide any further details on which areas of the UK Armed Forces still use the L110A2, the numbers held and what operations it is used for.