166 jobs to go at British bases in Cyprus

The British bases in Cyprus are to reduce their military and civilian personnel as part of the Ministry of Defence efforts to keep support services in-house and not contract them out to the three bidders who had applied.
As a result, some 166 jobs are expected to go, a British Forces radio report said Wednesday.
By applying “business improvement” methods, the MOD hopes to “achieve best value for money and ensure resources are committed in the most effective and efficient manner. In doing so, it aimed to improve working practices and efficiency in provision of support services and maintain high levels of services to BFC customers.”
“After considering the risks of contractorisation and operational support requirements and the relatively small difference in cost it was decided that this was the best decision for the MOD,” an announcement issued by British Forces Cyprus said.
The announcement added that “there will inevitably be some job losses in order to achieve efficiencies but these will be kept to a minimum and sensitively handled in accordance with Civilian Employment Regulations. This would have been the case whatever option had been taken.”
It explained that ,ilitary personnel numbers will be adjusted through tour length management, while for locally employed civilians, “a preference exercise will be conducted in accordance with the Civilian Employment Regulations, offering alternative employment (if suitable employment opportunities are available) or an early release package.”
The U.K. retains a military presence on the island in order to keep a strategic location at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, for use as a staging point for forces sent to locations in the Middle East and Asia. BFC is a tri-service command, with all three services based on the island reporting to it. At present, there are approximately 3,500 personnel serving in Cyprus.