HC Deb 13 May 1969 vol 783 cc1213-5
Q1 Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Prime Minister (1) if he will arrange for the transfer of the responsibility for the drafting, revising and administration of the Building Regulations from the Minister of Housing and Local Government to the Minister of Public Building and Works;

(2) if he will now seek to set up a Ministry of Construction to co-ordinate and be responsible for all departmental responsibilities at present divided between the Ministry of Public Building and Works and the Ministry of Housing and Local Government.

The Prime Minister (Mr. Harold Wilson)

No, Sir. I would refer my hon. Friend to my reply to a Question by the hon. Member for Worcestershire, South (Sir G. Nabarro) on 3rd December, 1968.—[Vol. 774, c. 436.]

Mrs. Short

Does my right hon. Friend accept that work in connection with the Building Regulations falls within the competence of professional engineers? While appreciating that the Ministry of Housing and Local Government has recently increased its establishment of professional engineers by 100 per cent.—it now has two—may I ask whether he thinks that he should look at this again and transfer this work to a Department which is better equipped?

On the setting up of a Ministry of Construction, does my right hon. Friend accept that every other advanced country in Europe has one Ministry to co-ordinate all the building work and all the work on building materials?

The Prime Minister

On the first part of the Question, this has been a very difficult decision which successive Governments have faced. I think that there have been three changes of responsibility in the last six to seven years. When I announced the transfer of this function to the Ministry of Housing and Local Government in 1966, I explained the considerations which were in my mind. The Minister of Housing and Local Government has fully adequate sources to advise him on the technical aspects of his responsibilities. I could go further and describe them.

The idea of amalgamating the two Departments has often been considered. I made some transfers from the Ministry of Public Building and Works to the Ministry of Housing and Local Government. But my hon. Friend will realise that the Ministry of Housing and Local Government now faces a tremendous job, in addition to its normal responsibilities, arising from the Maud Report. It would be wrong to load it further with the very wide responsibilities of the Ministry of Bublic Building and Works.

Sir Knox Cunningham

Has not the Home Secretary been freed to co-ordinate these responsibilities?