§ 35. Mr. Woodburnasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is aware of the handicap to the development of new towns because of the relatively abnormal burden of rent and rates necessarily involved under present law; and whether he is prepared to introduce legislation to make it possible for houses and other premises in new towns to be let at an annual cost commensurate with other areas.
§ Mr. J. StuartI am aware that at present rents are inflated by the element of owners' rates and that the actual rent passing must be taken as the rateable value. As the right hon. Gentleman knows, the Government propose, in the Bill now before the House, that rateable value should be dissociated from actual rent and that owners' rates should be abolished.
§ Mr. WoodburnEven if that were so, is not the right hon. Gentleman aware that no advantage would accrue to the new towns from that Bill for five years? It would frustrate the whole policy of the development of new towns if, for the next five years, they were to be handicapped by having these anomalies and contradictions in rents within their areas. When promoting another new town, will he not take special steps to see that something is done to set it free from the contradictions which exist inside the areas of existing new towns?
§ Mr. StuartIt would really mean the duplication of legislation to some extent, because, when the Bill which we are, and were this morning, considering upstairs passes through this House—if it ever gets through the Standing Committee—both the new town houses and the council houses should be valued at the same figure, and tenants should pay the same rates, which is what the right hon. Gentleman wants.