More must be done to improve the “unacceptable” condition of Scotland’s military accommodation, a Fife MP has said.
Stephen Gethins said many families at Leuchars Station were among those struggling with poor living conditions, including broken central heating and cracked toilets.
The SNP MP for North East Fife was speaking after it emerged complaints about poor quality housing for soldiers in Scotland, including those based at Leuchars, had risen by 43% in just a year.
The former RAF base will become the main hub for army activity in Scotland as part of a £1.7 billion investment announced in February.
Figures released following a freedom of information request by the SNP showed there were 621 complaints across the country in 2016, up from 433 the previous year.
The surge came after the introduction of a new charging system introduced last year, which saw 81% of service families paying more rent.
Fewer than half of regular personnel said they were satisfied with the overall standard of their accommodation since CarillionAmey were contracted to do repairs and maintenance.
CarillionAmey said there had been a 42% reduction in complaints so far this year.
Problems reported at Leuchars include broken boilers, broken and cracked toilets that take more than a week to repair, poor furniture and a lack of insulation.
Those living there have also reported difficulties getting contractors to make repairs.
Mr Gethins described the rise in complaints as shocking.
“It shows just how badly the MOD has handled changes to soldiers’ accommodation,” he said.
“I have been contacted by several families living at Leuchars Station who are struggling with poor accommodation and the time it takes contractors to repair even the simplest of faults.
“This is not acceptable.”
He added: “Service personnel do an extremely difficult job and they and their families deserve so much better.
“As I have made clear to the Defence Secretary in Parliament, any future investment in Leuchars must be family friendly and that means decent, quality accommodation.”
The Ministry of Defence said it had invested £63 million in improving accommodation for service families in the last year alone.
A spokesman added: “We continue to improve the quality of our accommodation for the armed forces and their families, including investing £660m in improving housing over the last six years.
“Last year we refurbished 4,700 homes and spent £450m on keeping rent costs down.
“Figures to date for 2017 show a significantly lower number of complaints.”
He said the MOD had actively encouraged occupants to raise concerns last year to ensure they were addressed.
This followed a high level of public interest in service accommodation issues.
A spokesperson for CarillionAmey said: “Although we recognise there was a 43% increase in housing complaints between 2015 and 2016, we have seen a 42% reduction so far in 2017.
“Following improvements made in 2016 we are now meeting, and in places exceeding, the overall requirements of our contracts and have seen customer satisfaction increase.
“Our efforts were commended at the Public Accounts Committee in January 2017.
“We are always looking for ways to improve and recently met with soldiers and their families in Edinburgh to discuss what more we can do to support them.”
