Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many times his Department has invoked penalty clauses in the service accommodation contracts with (a) VIVO, (b) Amey and (c) Pinnacle.

The service accommodation contracts do not invoke penalty clauses; however, they withhold fixed and variable profit based on performance.

Profits have been withheld at the end of each of the four quarterly Service Periods since that bedding-in period ended.

The Department is unable to provide the specific amounts being withheld, as its disclosure would prejudice commercial interests.