HC Deb 08 February 1978 vol 943 cc1435-6
6. Mr. Michael Latham

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will introduce legislation to repeal the Community Land Act 1975.

The Under-Secretary of State for the Environment (Mr. Guy Barnett)

Far from repealing this valuable measure, we intend to develop the land scheme on the basis of the sound start it has already made.

Mr. Latham

Will the Minister confirm that the first two years of operation of the Act in England have produced a net loss to the taxpayer of just under £20 million? When will he wind up this expensive and bureaucratic mess?

Mr. Barnett

I cannot confirm a figure of that kind. I do not know upon what basis the hon. Gentleman produces it. I am not aware of the measure of research he has undertaken. I do not know whether he has up-to-date figures on the disposals of land. However, if the scheme is as he describes it, it seems odd that more than 200 local authorities, at least half of them Conservative-controlled, should have asked for loan sanction under the scheme.

Mr. Gwilym Roberts

Rather than repeal the Act, will my hon. Friend consider the difficulty experienced by authorities such as the Cannock Chase District Council in obtaining land under the Act for industrial purposes, particularly since in this area there is a high level of unemployment?

Mr. Barnett

I should be more than delighted to assist the council in question in any way I could by advice. I would do everything I could to encourage it to use the Act for providing jobs for local people. I hope that either my hon. Friend or the council in question will get in touch.

Mr. Heseltine

As it is abundantly clear that in the urban areas there is a mass of acreage of derelict land already in the hands of local authorities, what conceivable argument is there for giving them the right to acquire even more?

Mr. Barnett

I think that the hon. Gentleman takes too simplistic a view. The purpose of the Community Land Act is the production of land for development—for owner-occupation, industrial development or commercial development. If the hon. Gentleman has studied the problem at all, he will know that there are special problems involved with derelict land and waste land in inner areas with which my right hon. Friend is dealing.