39. Mr. Rostron Duckworthasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works why local authorities are permitted an expenditure of up to £250 per house in the case of war damage whereas 617 private owners are only to be permitted to expend £200 per house, while the need is the same in both cases?
§ The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works (Mr. Hicks)Under the special scheme for the repair by local authorities of some 40,000 war damaged houses in England and Wales, the authorised average expenditure per house has been fixed at £200. Licences under Defence Regulation 56A are not required in these cases, but private owners wishing to do their own repairs must obtain a licence where the total amount spent on the property in any period of 12 months exceeds £100. The grant of a licence is dependent upon the facts of each case and is not determined by an arbitrary money limit such as that mentioned in the Question. For houses comparable with those being repaired under the special scheme, a broadly equivalent standard is now being applied provided labour and materials are available in the district.