§ 34. Mr. T. Fraserasked the Secretary of State for Scotland the weekly amount in rent and rates which will be payable by tenants of four-apartment houses owned by East Kilbride Development Corporation under the new rents scheme where the maximum rebate is granted; and what proportion that amount bears to the tenant's income.
§ Mr. J. N. BrowneThe rent payable in such a case will be 5s. a week, which is just over 3 per cent. of the income qualifying for maximum rebate. The rate payable, within the full amount of 22s. 6d.—which is 14 per cent. of that income—will depend on the extent to which the County Council as rating authority exercise its statutory power to grant relief on the ground of inability to pay.
§ Mr. FraserDoes not this mean, however, that a person with a very low income, of say £7 or £8 per week, will have to pay 27s. or 28s. a week in rent and rates, since they cannot get a house to rent without paying rates any more than one can buy a packet of cigarettes without paying the duty on those cigarettes? Does not it mean that these tenants will be left with precious little for food, clothing and other essential supplies?
§ Mr. BrowneThe tenants will be left in precisely the same position after the rents have been raised as they are now.