Around £60 million is to be spent improving the Leuchars military base under Government plans, a defence source has told The Courier.
Scotland is going to receive new investment in accommodation and facilities as part of the army’s new basing plan, which Defence Secretary Philip Hammond is expected to announce this week.
The plan will clarify for the first time the army’s future permanent UK locations as soldiers are brought back from Germany, although the timescale of moving troops into Fife is still unclear.
The source said the money will make the best use of the MoD estate and provide better accommodation and facilities for troops and their families.
“The new basing plan brings certainty and security to our armed forces and to Scotland,” they said. “It will give the UK economy a £1.8 billion boost, with Scotland receiving a share of this investment to spend on new and improved accommodation and facilities for its soldiers and their families.
“It is expected that around £60 million alone will be spent improving the infrastructure at Leuchars, where there will be a significant army presence.
“Britain’s defence is organised first and foremost to meet military requirements.”
It emerged yesterday that Scotland will receive around 600 troops, as opposed to the 7,000 additional soldiers originally promised by former defence secretary Liam Fox.
That has led to attacks from the SNP, who have accused the UK Government of “abandoning” promises to increase troop numbers in Scotland.
However, the defence source said Scotland will get a modest increase of nearly 20% in its Army headcount, with some units returning from Germany to the improved Leuchars base.
The source added: “People should judge the SNP’s credibility on defence against its own proposals for investment in Scotland’s defence. They propose an annual defence and security budget, £2.5 billion, that is one fourteenth of what the UK spends on defence alone, around £33.5bn, for a country with a population and tax base of one-twelfth the size.
“The SNP is failing to meet even its own test, while sacrificing the value Scotland derives from the UK’s common defence.
“The real question is how will Angus Robertson be able to keep his many pledges on a defence budget that is substantially smaller than comparable countries like Norway, Denmark and Sweden?
“We are safer and more secure together than we would ever be by breaking apart.”
An MoD spokesperson said: “The defence of our country is planned, organised and managed on a UK basis to meet the needs of the UK as a whole.
“Scotland benefits greatly from being part of this and from every pound invested in the collective security the UK provides, not just what is invested in Scotland directly.
“This significant investment would not be guaranteed under an independent Scotland, it would be reduced to one-fourteenth of the current UK spend under Scottish Government plans.
“Scotland would no longer benefit from the UK’s sophisticated defence capabilities that provide the highest levels of protection and security.
“It is clear that we are safer and more secure together as a United Kingdom.”