Veterans minister demands clarity from MOD to remove uncertainty
Keith Brown says "Scottish interests are not considered a priority" and expresses his concerns about a lack of consultation with meeting requests turned down.
Veterans' Minister Keith Brown has called for the Ministry of Defence to “clarify their plans immediately" to remove the uncertainty over the future of Fort George and Kinloss Barracks.
Highland Councillors met with the MSP in a bid to save the closure-threatened Fort George barracks, with talk of the threatened Kinloss Barracks also up for debate.
The local authority has been fighting to save the historic home of the Black Watch battalion since it was earmarked for closure by the Ministry of Defence.
Commenting on the risks to Fort George and Kinloss Barracks Keith Brown said:
“The Local Communities here in the North of Scotland have close bonds with the military. Highland Council and Moray Economic Partnership are rightly concerned about the risk of the MOD closing Fort George and Kinloss Barracks which would have significant impacts on local jobs, schools and other infrastructure"
“I find it wholly unacceptable that Mr Lancaster (Minister of State at the MOD) has been unable to find the time to meet with me to discuss the MOD’s latest basing review, despite repeated efforts by my office to arrange the meeting. I’ve not even been sent basic information about the Scottish sites or unit moves that are being considered in the review"
"It is disappointing too that some Local Authorities and the Moray Economic Partnership have had meeting requests turned down"
"This is of vital importance to local communities in Scotland. Mr Lancaster’s refusal to meet is a worrying signal that Scottish interests are not considered to be a priority"
"We are extremely disappointed that – just three years after the last Army Basing Plan, which was billed as offering stability and certainty – the MOD is conducting its biggest ever programme of closures, throwing personnel, families and communities into uncertainty all over again"
“I find it astonishing that the MOD would contemplate the possible closures of the Kinloss and Fort George bases. Scotland’s defence footprint has already been diminished through successive rounds of MOD cuts, to say nothing of the far-reaching economic and social impacts such a move would have on local communities"
"We must be consulted about any options the MOD are considering before decisions are taken"