§ 20. Mr. Arnold Shawasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether he will now encourage local authorities to undertake an increase in their home mortgage facilities.
§ Mr. GreenwoodI shall shortly be discussing with the local authorities their arrangements for lending for next year.
§ Mr. ShawIs my right hon. Friend aware of the difficulties and hardship suffered particularly by young married couples in getting mortgages from local authorities since the local authorities, under Circular 24/66, are unable to make advances on new properties, and people are precluded from getting mortgages from building societies owing to the need for the husband to have a high income? Will my right hon. Friend now modify Circular 24/66?
§ Mr. GreenwoodIt would be wiser to await the result of my discussions with the local authorities. I have no knowledge that abuse of the system is as widespread as my hon. Friend says, but the option mortgage scheme we announced yesterday will go a long way towards helping some of those to whom he referred.
§ Mr. IremongerSince I represent the politically sounder part of the borough, may I put two supplementary questions? First, is it not true that these moneys to be lent to prospective house purchasers are lent on the valuation and not the price paid for the property? Secondly, would not the right hon. Gentleman recognise that, so long as his housing programme is a failure, lending inadequate funds to buy houses which are not there at inflated prices is a piece of cynical window-dressing?
§ Mr. GreenwoodThe answer to the first part of that lengthy supplementary question is, "Yes". The reply to the second part is that perhaps the hon. Gentleman will read the Housing Subsidies Bill we published yesterday.