HC Deb 04 February 1981 vol 998 cc284-5
16. Mr. Latham

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress is being made by local authorities in disposing of land which they bought under the Community Land Act.

The Under-Secretary of State for the Environment (Mr. Giles Shaw)

Information on such disposals is no longer being collected as the remaining sites have now been merged with the general land holdings of local authorities. We are urging authorities to dispose of land suitable for private development.

Mr. Latham

Is my hon. Friend aware that the local authorities bought a lot of land under the Community Land Act but resold hardly any? Is he further aware that the process of resale that was required under the Act should be carefully monitored by his Department to ensure that the land is sold?

Mr. Shaw

I fully accept my hon. Friend's view that we must do everything possible to persuade and urge local authorities to dispose of land that is suitable for private development. I shall bear his point in mind.

Mr. Skinner

Will the Minister tell his hon. Friend and others that, although they are now complaining that the Community Land Act resulted in land being bought, only a few years ago people such as the Minister and most of his colleagues on the Tory Front Bench said that the Community Land Act should be scrapped because it was not doing any good and land was not being purchased?

Mr. Shaw

The hon. Gentleman must recognise that the sheer costs involved in the transaction have shown a poor return on the money spent.