§ 26. Mr. Craven-Ellisasked the Minister of Health, whether consideration will be given to informing private enterprise building industry what is expected of them in the post-war housing programme and to not proceeding with local authority housing unless private enterprise is found to be incapable of dealing with post-war requirements?
§ The Minister of Health (Mr. Ernest Brown)A sub-committee of my Central Housing Advisory Committee, under the chairmanship of Sir Felix Pole, is now examining the part that private enterprise can best play in post-war housing and the conditions under which it can most effectively operate.
§ Mr. Craven-EllisCan the right hon. Gentleman say how long this Committee is going to sit before it makes its report, and further, whether private enterprise was approached on the question of the post-war programme before local authorities?
§ Mr. BrownThe Committee will report when it has done its work. The principal issue concerned is what will be the economic conditions in which private enterprise can play its part?
§ Mr. ShinwellWill it not take a very long time for this Committee to find out how private enterprise can solve the housing problem?
§ Mr. BrownThere is a very great deal of information concerning the errors and fallacies about private enterprise housing over the first 10 years after the last war.
§ Mr. KirkwoodIs it not the case that if there is one thing which is decided to-day, it is that private enterprise has failed in the building of houses?
§ Mr. BrownThe answer is that in England and Wales private enterprise built 3,000,000 out of the 4,000,000 houses built between the two wars.
§ 30. Mr. Wakefieldasked the Minister of Health why, if subsidies are paid to local authorities for the building of certain types of houses, they cannot also be given to private enterprise to do the same kind of work?
§ Mr. BrownThe subsidies payable to local authorities are closely linked with their duty to clear the slums and abate overcrowding. The authorities are required to give preference to persons who are occupying insanitary or overcrowded houses, have large families or are living under unsatisfactory conditions, and many of them take advantage of the powers conferred on them to grant rebates from rent in appropriate cases.
§ Mr. WakefieldIf private enterprise were given the same opportunities as are given to local authorities, is it not likely that inefficiencies and delays would not occur?
§ Mr. ShinwellIf private enterprise can do the job so well, does it really require a subsidy?