EQUIPMENT worth almost £15,000 has been stolen from military bases in North Yorkshire in the space of a year, defence chiefs have confirmed.

The items taken from the supposedly secure sites, which have been revealed following an investigation by an MP, included body armour, a gun, medals, fuel and ration packs.

Across the UK, £700,000 worth of equipment fell into the hands of thieves and Labour MP Luciana Berger, who uncovered the details, said the findings were “a national disgrace”.

Catterick Garrison bore the brunt of the thefts, with £5,510 in cash being stolen from its welfare fund, body armour worth £1,400 disappearing from its Somme Barracks and £1,423 worth of diesel being stolen from Marne Barracks, along with £400 in ration packs.

Military items including a pistol, worth £2,900, were snatched from RAF Linton-on-Ouse near York, and the Army Foundation College at Harrogate was the scene of the theft of divers’ wrist computers worth £1,000, a £268 sat-nav system and a military helmet, uniform and medals, all worth £500.