Shropshire based barracks and airfields may be sold off to help the frontline
Surplus barracks such as those in Shropshire must be sold to help boost frontline armed forces, the Defence Secretary has warned.
Michael Fallon said in a speech that airfields, barracks, and military vehicles will need to be sold, and their resources injected into frontline resources.
He hailed efficiencies made by the coalition over the past five years, boasting that they have been achieved while still maintaining the Nato target for military spending to be two per cent of gross domestic product.
But he insisted the "job is far from over" and the Government has to keep "sweating our buildings and land".
The comments, in a speech to the Institute for Government (IfG), come amid complaints about the scale of cuts to the Armed Forces, with the size of the Army being cut by a fifth to 82,000 and plans to make up the shortfall with reserves.
Shrewsbury's Copthorne Barracks is one site that is likely to be sold, after the bulk of it was put up for sale in November.
Earlier this month, Shrewsbury MP Daniel Kawczynski called for the town site to be bought for use as student accommodation for the new University Centre Shrewsbury.
Many parts of RAF Ternhill near Market Drayton have already been offloaded after falling into disuse.
Prime Minister David Cameron has refused to commit to maintaining Britain's defence spending at two per cent of GDP after the election, adding to the need to raise extra cash.
Mr Fallon said: "The job's far from over. With continuing demands on our resources, with the cost of manpower and equipment rising, and with competition from emerging nations increasing efficiency in defence cannot be a one-off.
"As in any big organisation, MoD must not merely be match-fit, it must be permanently fit.
"Every year we should be looking to take out unnecessary cost, to improve productivity, and to sweat our buildings and land so we can better support the front line.
"Over the past four and a half years we have shaken up the system, made big savings and delivered capabilities.
"All this while meeting Nato's two per cent and 20 per cent targets.
"Today defence is fighting fit with a balanced budget able to invest in the kit and people we need to keep Britain safe."
