HC Deb 10 April 1968 vol 762 cc1344-6
8. Mr. Tom McMillan

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland owing to the further storm damage in Glasgow if he will now give special aid to speed permanent repairs.

Mr. Ross

I have at present nothing to add to the statement I made to the House on 4th April.—[Vol. 762, c. 619–23.]

Mr. McMillan

Is my right hon. Friend aware that when wind and rain hits the City of Glasgow it becomes a City of fear and misery for many thousands of people? Will he now give realistic Government incentives to attract skilled workers from anywhere in the United Kingdom, so that an onslaught can be made, each weekend, to rid the people of this human misery?

Mr. Ross

I can assure my hon. Friend that we are doing all that we can to attract labour from all parts of the country to Glasgow. One of the difficulties is that whereas normally we would get the labour from surrounding areas, these areas have also been hit. At present they need every man. Once again I give the assurance that we are not lax in this matter.

Mr. Noble

Does the Secretary of State not remember that when he made his statement he told us that the Minister of State was considering an urgent programme with Glasgow Corporation, and that he would meet members of the Corporation the following day? As a result of that, has he anything more to tell us?

Mr. Ross

I can tell the right hon. Gentleman that not only did I see my hon. Friend, and had telephone communication with him, but I saw the Lord Provost of Glasgow on the next day, the Friday. My hon. Friend will be seeing not only officials of Glasgow Corporation but officials of all the authorities tomorrow. I have arranged a series of meetings to ensure not only that progress goes on, but that we are fully informed of what is happening.

17. Mr. Galbraith

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the approximate number of houses in Glasgow which suffered damage in the recent hurricane of a nature likely to endanger life and limb through hazards such as collapsing chimney heads and how many of these were rent restricted houses.

Mr. Ross

The roofs of some 10,000 tenements were damaged, 5,000 of them seriously, but I cannot say how much of this damage endangered life and limb. All the tenanted houses would be either controlled or regulated under the Rent Acts.

Mr. Galbraith

Will the Secretary of State try to find this out, because it is an important matter? Will he consider making a grant where the condition of properties due to restrictions under the Rent Act, made full insurance impossible? Will he consider introducing a grant to reimburse those where the cost of repair is inflated by the extent of the damage throughout the whole City of Glasgow because it was impossible to get competitive tenders?

Mr. Ross

I think that the hon. Gentleman has gone very wide of his original Question. Our first concern was to ensure that dangerous buildings were dealt with at once, and this was done.

Concerning the point about the Rent Acts, the hon. Gentleman will appreciate that the mini-hurricane or great storm did not select rent restricted properties alone, but affected all kinds of properties.