§ 51. Mr. J. Johnsonasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies why the Northern Rhodesian Government are withdrawing the subsidy from African housing; and what proportion this new economic rent will form of average African wages.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydThe objects are: to reduce the financial burden, using the savings for new housing; to relieve the housing shortage by encouraging employers and Africans to build their own houses; and to impress upon employers the true cost of housing their African employees. Since the African wage earners who comprise 97 per cent. of those housed in urban areas have their rent paid in full by their employers, the increase in the rent will not deprive them of any part of their wages.