SNP CALL FOR DEFENCE COMMITTEE INQUIRY

For immediate Release: Wednesday 5th January 2011




Attn: NEWS DESKS


POLITICAL / DEFENCE CORRESPONDENTS



COMMONS SHOULD SEEK ANSWERS ON CENTRALISATION OF MANPOWER, BASING AND SPENDING


The Commons Defence Select Committee is being urged to launch an inquiry into the alarming and disproportionate decline in Scotland’s defence footprint – which has seen the loss of more than 10,500 defence jobs and a £5.6bn defence underspend in Scotland over the last decade.



Calls for an urgent inquiry come as the MoD considers further cuts which could see one in four of Scotland's uniformed service posts cut - a 25% reduction in Scottish military posts from 12,000 to 9,000.


In a letter to the Defence Committee chairman, SNP Westminster leader and Defence spokesperson Angus Robertson MP expresses concern that the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) is set to accelerate the trend of concentrating defence manpower, basing and spending in the South of England.



In his letter Mr Robertson writes:


“Scotland has endured mammoth defence cuts over the last decade, and all the evidence surrounding the SDSR suggests that the Ministry of Defence is set to continuing the trend of concentrating defence manpower, basing and spending in the South of England.


“At present there are only 12,190 UK service-personnel in Scotland. Since the last defence review in 1997 there have been more than 10,500 defence job losses in Scotland and there has been a defence under-spend of at least £5.6 billion. This under-spend constitutes a 36% budget shortfall. Scotland has seen a severe defence shortfall and contraction which cannot continue.


“There are now crucial questions about whether the UK Government is committed to a future for conventional defence across the UK. Will there be a continuing defence footprint in the different nations and regions of the UK including manpower, basing and spending? Unless Ministers consider this as a priority now, the conventional UK armed forces will become concentrated in ‘Super Garrisons’ and bases, commanded and trained almost exclusively in the South of England.


“There are also questions about the levels of support made available by the UK Government to address the devastating social and economic consequences of base closures and realignments. In my own Moray constituency the closure of RAF Kinloss and the threatened closure of RAF Lossiemouth have been a hammer blow for the economy, yet the UK Government have offered no plan or support to help the community.


“This is an issue that affects families and communities the length and breadth of Scotland, and I would encourage the committee to examine the disproportionate decline in the defence footprint in Scotland when compared to the rest of the UK.”



Mr Robertson underlined his concerns by pointing to a decision by the Ministry of Defence to withhold information showing regional breakdown of MoD spending. In recent years the MoD statistics have confirmed the trend of job losses and spending patterns - but the MoD has said it will stop providing the statistics.



Mr Robertson added:


“The decision to withhold information showing regional breakdown of MoD spending will fuel fears that Scotland will continue to bear the brunt of defence cuts.



“The MOD know that these statistics are damaging and their answer is not to address the problem, but to stop producing the data.


“Regional and national defence statistics are available in other countries. With a mouse-click you can access this information down to State level in the United States. In Canada, a nation with close parliamentary and military links to the UK the Department for National Defence produces similar statistics both at Provincial and at


constituency level. These and other countries think it is right and proper to confirm their employment and spending decisions and it clearly impacts of their policy thinking.



“The UK Government might think that they can hide the consequences of their centralising policies by refusing to publish key statistics, but it will be hard to avoid the facts on the ground.



“Defence policy is not just about strategic and foreign policy considerations, which must of course drive any review. Defence policy is also about the defence footprint, about where our personnel are stationed, and about where defence resources are spent amongst many other factors.”



ENDS