§ 7. Mr. Wyn Robertsasked the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the impact of the recent increase in house mortgage rates on private sector building and sales over the next six months.
§ The Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Mr. Alec Jones)Private sector starts to the end of September are 9 per cent. up on the same period last year. I doubt if the increase in mortgage interest rates will greatly affect the level of lending by building societies, if at all.
Mr. RobertIs not the Minister aware that the level of new applications for mortgages is already falling in Wales as a result of this record increase of 2 per cent. in mortgage interest rates? Is it not likely that the total figure for this year of private house building will be very low, although it will be up, perhaps, on that of last year, which was a very low level indeed?
§ Mr. Alec JonesIt seems that in 1978 building societies are likely to promise as many home loans as they did in 1977, which in itself was an all-time record for a single year. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment announced in the House last Friday that the level of lending for the first quarter of next year will be £2,100 million. That at least should encourage the building industry to build houses.