§ 3 and 4. Mr. Hamlingasked the President of the Board of Trade (1) if he will give details of the discussions he has had on the relocation of factories displaced by development in various parts of London; with whom these discussions took place; and what proposals have been made to relocate the factories on the Woolwich Arsenal estate;
(2) what further steps have been taken to plan the development of an industrial estate on the site of the Royal Ordnance Factory, Woolwich.
§ Mr. JayThe Government have decided that the primary use of the land released at Woolwich shall be for housing, but I am prepared to consider 658 a limited number of suitable industrial projects for location there.
My officials are in touch with the Greater London Council about the industrial development of the Arsenal site, but no proposals to relocate any factories have been received as yet.
§ Mr. HamlingWould my right hon. Friend agree that certain factories which are at present in the inner parts of London, in the very congested area, might be suitable for relocation in an area like Woolwich Arsenal estate? Secondly, would he also consider that if we have a very large number of people occupying houses there it would be reasonable for there to be industrial opportunities nearer where they live rather than at a distance?
§ Mr. JayYes, I agree with both those propositions. I think that the most suitable work for this area is probably nonconforming industries moving from other parts of London.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterWould the use of part of that site for factories prejudice or modify in any way the statement of the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Housing and Local Government on 5th April that 65,000 people would have homes found for them on this site?