Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the report by the National Audit Office, Optimising the defence estate, published in June in 2021, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) potential impact of closure of sites on local communities and economies and (b) compatibility of HM Treasury's policy on seeking best financial return with local needs and aspirations for renewal of those sites.

The Ministry of Defence has a requirement to deliver its defence tasks as efficiently as possible and where sites are no longer required or critical defence tasks are better met through using another site this includes their disposal. Individual social and/or economic assessments are not routinely conducted as part of this process, however, the Department continues to work closely with local authorities to determine the impact of these decisions and how we can release surplus military sites for meaningful future use.