§ 18. Mr. Moateasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he has advised local authorities not to take into account the earnings of a wife in established employment when calculating the amount of a mortgage offer under the government scheme for local authority loans.
§ Mr. MoateDoes my right hon. Friend recognise that many local authorities refuse to take into account wives' earnings when calculating mortgage advances, even when those wives are in established employment? As this could have the effect of reducing the benefit of his recent policy statement, would he consider issuing reasonable guidelines to local authorities about mortgage advances?
§ Mr. AmeryIt would be wrong for me to try to direct local authorities; indeed, I have no powers to do so. A number of local authorities take a progressive view about this and take into account a wife's earnings in appropriate instances. I hope that more will do so.