MPs debated plans to close Maidstone's Invicta Park Barracks in the House of Commons this morning.

Helen Grant, MP for Maidstone and the Weald, led the discussion on the government's A Better Defence Estate Strategy. This sets out the closure of the 41-acre home of the 36 Engineer Regiment of the Royal Engineers and the Queen's Gurkha Engineers, as well as 90 other bases across the UK.

The proposals are part of a bid to reduce spending on the Ministry of Defence's (MoD) huge estate portfolio, which currently makes up just under 2% of the UK's landmass, costing £2.5bn a year to maintain.

Mrs Grant, told colleagues she had serious concerns about the advice taken before the decision was made and the level of consultation that had been carried out in advance of the closure by 2027.

She said thousands of military and civilian personnel and their families still don't know what closure would mean for them, saying: "Will they need to commute further? Will they need to move house? Will they need to remove their children from school and even will they have a job at the end of it all?

"It will impact our local communities, schools and economies. Businesses, schools and places of worship will be affected by the departure of these people.

"There will be a loss of military heritage, support and connection with towns and counties around the country. Many of these connections span hundreds of years and are the source of a close bond within our armed forces and communities."

The site of Invicta Park Barracks has already been earmarked for 1,300 homes. An FOI by Kent Online discovered the MoD employed a chartered surveyors to plan a housing development months before its closure was announced – despite insisting the decision was based purely on military advice.