RT.com
02 Oct 2022, 04:14 GMT+10
The UK Defense Ministry is ?doing nothing? to fill more than 1,300 vacant properties near its bases, local lawmakers claimed
Conservative politicians in Britain have accused the Ministry of Defense of "doing nothing" to accommodate Ukrainian refugees, even though 1,350 military homes sit empty across the county of Wiltshire alone. Hundreds of Ukrainian families currently living with British hosts may soon be left homeless.
The British government's 'Homes for Ukraine' scheme saw more than 156,000 Ukrainian refugees arrive in the UK since March, according to its data. However, with many of their British sponsors agreeing to host the new arrivals only for a period of six months and declining to extend, activists warned in August that as many as 50,000 could be left homeless by next year.
"I'm on the edge of a housing crisis now," Councillor Richard Clewer, Conservative leader of Wiltshire Council, told the Daily Mail on Saturday. "I have 360 Ukrainian families that are likely to need to leave host families because they have agreed to a six-month deal."
Clewer said that he has been attempting to "persuade" the Ministry of Defense to place these families in Army housing. As Wiltshire is home to around a fifth of the Army's soldiers, the ministry owns a stock of properties in the area worth tens of millions of pounds, of which 1,350 have been vacant "for at least five or seven years," the councillor said.
"They are doing absolutely nothing" to fill the homes, he continued. "I think it's a disgrace they have stayed empty this long. I could use them to house families that desperately need housing."
Tory MP Danny Kruger told the Mail that not only could these properties house Ukrainians, but also locals struggling with a shortage of affordable homes.
"I recognize the Army needs some spare housing for families who have to move at short notice, but this is a failure of management," Kruger said.
The Defense Ministry had not responded to the Mail's article as of Saturday afternoon, but it has previously said that some of the 1,350 homes are located on Army property and are reserved for military families.
(RT.com)
Get a daily dose of Mexico Star news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Mexico Star.
More InformationGUATEMALA CITY - Heavy rains set off a landslide in Guatemala's capital early Monday sweeping several humble homes into a ...
New Delhi [India], September 26 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that the consensus on the Delhi declaration ...
In what could be a preview of their strategies for the 2024 presidential election, both President Joe Biden and former ...
Venice's history, art and architecture attract an estimated 20 million visitors every year. The city, a Unesco World Heritage site, ...
GUATEMALA CITY - Heavy rains set off a landslide in Guatemala's capital early Monday sweeping several humble homes into a ...
BANGKOK - Organized crime gangs behind Asia's so-called 'scamdemic' have set up remote bases in Myanmar's border area with China ...
MADISON, Wisconsin: Last week, five flamingos were seen along a Lake Michigan beach in Wisconsin, attracting a large crowd of ...
LONDON, UK: The UK government said over the weekend that it could downscale the scope of the High Speed 2 ...
LAHAINA, Hawaii: This week, officials are expected to begin lifting restrictions on entry to the burn zone in Lahaina, Hawaii, ...
LONG ISLAND, New York: On Thursday, a bus carrying members of a high school marching band traveling to a music ...
GAINESVILLE, Florida: Local police report stopping children, ages 10 and 11, who had driven their family car 200 miles, in ...
Washington, D.C.: This week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit suspended 96-year-old Judge Pauline Newman from hearing ...