House-building Programme (Hansard, 19 May 1971)

§ 15. Mr. Rost
asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on house-building progress during the first quarter of 1971.

§ 25. Mr. Lane
asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the trend in housing starts so far this year, compared with the same period of 1970.

§ 14. Mr. Finsberg
asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the total number of houses started in the first four months of 1971, and what was the corresponding figure for the same four months of 1970.

§ Mr. Amery
Figures for the first four months of this year are not yet available. In the first quarter of 1971, 70,600 houses and flats were started in Great Britain, an increase of 20½ per cent. compared with the 58,700 started in the first quarter of 1970. Completions totalled 82,100 in the first quarter of 1971, 2½ per cent. more than in the same period of 1970 when 80,000 houses and flats were completed.

§ Mr. Rost
Although the whole country will note with pleasure that the present Government are keeping yet another election promise—to get the house-building programme moving again after five disastrous years—would the Minister please give an assurance that he will not allow local authorities which have recently changed control to Labour to sabotage this programme by dragging their feet on house-building?

§ Mr. Amery
My hon. Friend can be sure that I will put the maximum pressure on local authorities, of whatever political complexion, to do what they should do to solve the housing problem.

§ Mr. Lane
Although the figures are encouraging, would my right hon. Friend agree that there is still much leeway to make up because of the failure of the Labour Government on this matter and also because of the great slack still to be found in the building industry? Could he confirm that the Government will be ready to take any further steps that may 1252 be needed during this year in order to keep up the momentum of improvement?

§ Mr. Amery
My hon. Friend is quite right. We still have a long way to go to solve the problem in both the public and the private sectors.

Mr. Bob Brown
Is the Minister aware that when the Labour Council lost control of the City of Newcastle-on-Tyne in 1967 there were 6,000 people on the waiting lists for council houses and that today the figure is 9,000? Is he also aware that last year Newcastle built only a miserable total of 800 houses, as against 2,000-plus when the Labour Party was in power?

§ Mr. Amery
I observe that in the recent elections Newcastle was preeminent among the important conurbations to secure a Conservative majority.

§ Mr. Freeson
Is the Minister aware that one important factor which led to the switch of political control in the elections is that during the last three years of Conservative rule there has been a considerable reduction in public authority housing starts of around 40 per cent.? In regard to the present position, is he able to reveal to the House the departmental forecast, which he must himself know, of the total number of expected housing starts for 1971? Is it expected to exceed 350,000?

§ Mr. Amery
On the first part of the hon. Gentleman's question, he will find that Labour councils did not in any sense have a better record than Conservative councils. On the second part, perhaps he would like to put down another Question.