Britain to spend an extra $2 billion on armed forces' housing

(Reuters) - Britain said on Saturday it would spend an extra 1.5 billion pounds ($2 billion) to tackle the poor state of housing for the country's armed forces, helping to support recruitment, retention and morale.

The spending will be included in the Strategic Defence Review (SDR), a 10-year plan to transform Britain's defences, the government said on Saturday. The SDR is expected to be published on Monday.

The money will fund urgent repairs and maintenance, from fixing boilers to tackling damp and mould in service family accommodation, alongside developing new housing, the government said.

A report by parliament's Defence Committee last December concluded that the accommodation was "shocking" and could result in service personnel quitting the forces.

"For too long, many military families have lived in sub-standard homes, but this government is taking decisive action to fix the dire state of military accommodation and ensure that our heroes and their loved ones live in the homes they deserve," Defence Secretary John Healey said in a statement.

The extra funds mean more than 7 billion pounds will be spent on service family accommodation and new-build single accommodation during the period to 2029, the government said.

($1 = 0.7422 pounds)

(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Michael Holden)