§ 39. Lieut.-Colonel Dowerasked the Minister of Works what are the emergency repairs which householders may undertake without licence.
§ Mr. SandysThe circumstances in which building work of an emergency character can be carried out without a licence are defined in paragraph 6 (b) of Defence Regulations 56A, of which I am sending my hon. and gallant Friend a copy.
§ Lieut.-Colonel DowerWhile thanking my right hon. Friend for that reply, may I ask him if he is satisfied that it covers all the most necessary urgent work, bearing in mind the fact that some local authorities take as long as three months to reply to an application for a licence?
§ Mr. SandysThe question refers to work that can be done without licence. The most urgent emergency work can be carried out without a licence. With regard to delays, I would like to tell my hon. and gallant Friend that, in London, where the £10 licensing limit has been applied during the last few months, the average time taken to issue a licence is under a week. Considering the other preoccupations of London local authorities at the moment, I do not think that that is slow.
§ Licut.-Colonel DowerBearing in mind what the Minister has said, may I ask him to ginger up those local authorities which are raising the average to as long as three months?