§ 30. Mr. Liptonasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs in view of the details which have been supplied to him by the hon. Member for Lambeth, Brixton, regarding the owner of 30, Groveway, London, S.W.9, who has publicly stated that he is exploiting racial tension to dispossess controlled tenants, what discussions he has had with the Lambeth Borough Council regarding a compulsory purchase order for this property.
§ Sir K. JosephNone, Sir. I understand that the Council is to be recommended at its next meeting to make a compulsory purchase order on the property, and in these circumstances it would not be proper for me to discuss the matter with the Council.
§ Mr. LiptonDoes not the right hon. Gentleman think it is quite wicked that a white landlord should seek the liberty to foment racial ill-will for the purpose 1074 of dispossessing white controlled tenants by introducing coloured tenants into his property? [HON. MEMBERS: "Race distinction."] I am responsible for the accuracy of the statement I am making. In those circumstances, will the right hon. Gentleman give an undertaking that he will not take his usual eight months to make up his mind about whether he should confirm the compulsory purchase order in this case?
§ Sir K. JosephWe have pledged ourselves to keep rent control until the end of this Parliament and have further pledged ourselves that in the next Parliament we shall not extend block decontrol but shall continue the policy of creeping decontrol. Nevertheless, there are certainly large numbers of good landlords who are penalised in the public interest by this policy—
§ Mr. LiptonWhat about this one?
§ Sir K. JosephI am not for a moment defending those landlords who seek to foment, by racial or any other trouble, unhappiness among existing controlled tenants, but the letting of a flat to a person of a non-English race is not in itself any evidence of such a policy.