HC Deb 23 May 1979 vol 967 cc1024-6
3. Mr. Hugh D. Brown

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what advice has been given to housing authorities, the Scottish Special Housing Association and new town development corporations to offer all their houses for sale to sitting tenants; and if he will make a statement.

The Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Mr. Malcolm Rifkind)

A circular has been issued to local authorities giving general consent to the sale of council houses to sitting tenants and urging authorities to adopt a policy of offering houses for sale. I shall make a copy of the circular available to the hon. Gentleman. The new policy will apply also to the Scottish Special Housing Association, and discussions are being held to decide how it is to be implemented. New town development corporations have for many years had discretion to sell their houses. They are being asked to bring the terms on which they do so into line with those which we have authorised for local authorities.

Mr. Brown

First, may I offer the hon. Gentleman my personal congratulations on his appointment? He will need all the help he can get, even from me. Would it not have been wiser to consult local authorities and COSLA before embarking on this policy of confrontation? Where will the additional public expenditure be found for loans to people, and does not the hon. Gentleman recognise that there is no freedom of choice for the more than 40 per cent. of council tenants who are at present in receipt of rent rebate?

Mr. Rifkind

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his congratulations, albeit in their qualified form. He suggests that there has been no consultation with the local authorities. He seems to forget that at this stage the circular is simply discretionary. We are removing the restraints which were imposed by the Labour Government, and I do not recall that there were any consultations with the local authorities when the restraints were first imposed.

The hon. Gentleman asked about cost. The whole purpose behind the Government's policy, quite apart from the new rights which it will give to council tenants, is to enable certain costs to be saved. The hon. Gentleman will be aware that loan charges form a substantial part of the housing account, and in addition maintenance and other costs of that kind amount to some two-thirds of the rent received by local authorities. Therefore, if the hon. Gentleman is concerned about costs, he should be supporting our policy.

Mr. Speaker

Order. Let me tell hon. Members who are new to the House that we normally have short questions and answers.

Mr. Sproat

Will my hon. Friend confirm that the bargains for council house tenants will not be found just in the so-called better estates? Is it not a fact that the scheme to put a market value on these council houses will mean that, with the discount, many council house tenants could find themselves in possession of a good solid piece of real estate for as little as £1,000?

Mr. Rifkind

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. It is certainly the Governmen's intention that local authorities shall consider all houses in their area available for sale to tenants who wish to purchase. We believe that the fact that a house in an area which might be considered to be of low amenity will have a market value substantially less than that of other properties will mean that there is no council tenant who could not seriously consider purchasing his own home.