§ 3. Mr. Boyd-Carpenterasked the Minister of Land and Natural Resources whether, in order to allay anxiety and to maintain the supply of land for house-building, he will give an assurance that it is not his intention to frustrate by legislation contracts already entered into for the sale of land for development.
§ The Minister of Land and Natural Resources (Mr. Frederick Willey)It is certainly not my intention to frustrate contracts already entered into, and I can assure the right hon. Gentleman that 3 am well aware of the desirability of avoiding the sort of situation he contemplates.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterWould the right hon. Gentleman convey the terms of that satisfactory reply to his right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade and suggest that he applies them to the Control of Office and Industrial Development Bill?
§ Mr. George JegerWill my right hon. Friend bear in mind that he is being asked in this Question to allay anxiety? Will he allay the anxiety of those who want to purchase land at reasonable prices and put their interests before the anxieties of the land speculators?
§ Mr. WilleyCertainly I can allay those anxieties.
§ 4. Mr. Boyd-Carpenterasked the Minister of Land and Natural Resources what progress he has made with his review of land use; and whether he will make a statement.
§ 36. Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Minister of Land and Natural Resources if he will make a statement on his review of land use.
§ 37. Mr. Bostonasked the Minister of Land and Natural Resources what progress he is making with his review of land use and his plans for a Crown Land Commission; and when he expects to introduce the necessary legislation.
§ Mr. WilleyI will introduce legislation to establish a land commission as soon as possible. So far as my review of land use is concerned, I will be making a statement very shortly.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterCan the right hon. Gentleman give us any indication of what "shortly" means? Does he mean next week?
§ Mr. WilleyI should hope in the next week or so.
§ Mr. BostonIs my right hon. Friend aware of the widespread satisfaction that at last we have a Government who are determined to take effective action in this matter? Will he not also agree that it is largely as a result of the previous Conservative Administration's failure to take any steps about land prices that they have got into such a bad state of affairs?
§ Mr. WilleyCertainly. We found that we were faced with 13 years of neglect.
§ Sir A. V. HarveyCan the right hon. Gentleman say whether the legislation which he has mentioned will have precedence over the Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Bill?
§ Mr. William HamiltonDid my right hon. Friend read the speech of the Leader of the Opposition at the weekend, to the effect that he has now come round to the view that profits from land speculation ought to be taxed?
§ Mr. WilleyThat speech did not escape my attention.