WIREDGOV

Bruce Crawford yesterday called for more clarity from the UK Government around the timescales of the changes outlined in the UK Basing Review.

Speaking ahead of the first joint External Stakeholders Communication meeting between officials from the Scottish Government, the Ministry of Defence, the Scotland Office and affected Local Authorities, The Cabinet Secretary for Parliamentary Business and Government Strategy said that while the Scottish Government was committed to working with the Ministry of Defence, the communities affected needed more reassurance.

Mr Crawford said:

"I appreciate the complex nature of the basing programme and that there is much to be worked through but I remain concerned about the lack of clarity on the timescales of providing further planning information.

"Scotland's defence communities need a clear commitment to give them some certainty about the future and to allow local planning decisions to be made.

"I have written to the Secretary of State, Philip Hammond, outlining my concerns. I hope tomorrow's meeting will put in place clear arrangements for providing our communities with the clarity they need. The Scottish Government is fully committed to supporting this process, to ensure that the information needs and implications for our communities are addressed in the delivery of the UK Government's future defence plans."

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