HC Deb 17 November 1986 vol 105 cc291-3
2. Mr. Wigley

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what was the total current and capital expenditure of his Department on housing during the last year for which figures are available.

Mr. Mark Robinson

Total public expenditure on housing in Wales in 1985–86 was £206.6 million.

Mr. Wigley

Without reservation, I condemn the recent arson attacks in my constituency. However, is not one of the problems facing rural areas such as in Gwynedd the shortage of rented accommodation, which to some extent has been impacted by the level of holiday homes? In these circumstances, will the Minister give an assurance that sufficient of the additional money announced recently by the Chancellor of the Exchequer for housing in general will come to Wales, and Gwynedd in particular, to give a guarantee that any person without a home for up to six months will get a house, either to rent or buy, within his means and within his area?

Mr. Robinson

As the hon. Gentleman knows, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State wrote to him on 1 November informing him that a supplementary allocation of £100,000 for the acquisition of vulnerable properties was being made available in his constituency. We have had a similar request for next year and we shall consider it in the normal way. I welcome the hon. Gentleman's response to the recent incident.

Mr. Harvey

Will my hon. Friend welcome the enormously increased provision for housing expenditure announced in the autumn statement and will he confirm that a certain proportion of that will be going to Wales?

Mr. Robinson

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State still has to take his decisions as to the spending in Wales in the coming year throughout the block. However, this financial year we have increased resources or allocations to local authorities by nearly 30 per cent.

Mr. Ron Davis

Is the Under-Secretary of State aware that the system of refurbishing PRC homes that was initially established under the 1984 Act is now in absolute chaos because of the inactivity of his Department? Is he particularly aware of the difficulties experienced, because of the inadequacies of the Act, in low-value areas—for example, in my own area of Rhymney Valley—where the local authority is faced with the wholesale repurchase of homes which had previously been sold? Will the Under-Secretary of State confirm that he has particular powers under the 1985 Act to use his discretion, and will he guarantee that he will look immediately at the problems involved in implementing this Act and take action accordingly?

Mr. Robinson

I am not entirely sure what the hon. Gentleman means by the dalliance of my Department. In terms of the submissions made to us by local authorities, we have met in full every bid for PRC houses. The hon. Gentleman should also be aware that recently we have increased the eligible expense limits. We shall continue to keep PRC houses, including, of course, those in the hon. Gentleman's constituency, under review.

Mr. Roy Hughes

Is not the Government's response poor recognition of the fact that Wales has such a large stock of pre-1919 homes, so many of which lack even basic amenities? Many thousands of houses need repair, our waiting lists are soaring, homelessness is rife, and yet thousands of building and construction workers are standing in the dole queue. Instead of sabotaging our local authorities, is it not time that the Government told them to get on with the job of repairing these houses and building new ones?

Mr. Robinson

I find the hon. Gentleman's use of the word "sabotage" extraordinary. When his party was in power it spent a mere £57 million on private sector renovation. To date this Government have spent £333 million on private sector renovation. In that area alone there has been an increase in spending during the current financial year. We have targeted resources on the home improvement backlog, and I am hopeful that we shall continue to do so during the coming months.

Mr. Terlezki

I hope that when finance is made available to improve houses in Wales, capital expenditure on housing will be spread throughout Wales, including my constitency of Cardiff, West, where the houses are in just as poor repair as anywhere else in Wales. Therefore, I do not accept the Opposition's crocodile tears. They are always crying for their own benefit. Should not the cake be divided equally among all parts of Wales?

Mr. Robinson

I assure my hon. Friend that we shall continue to provide resources right across Wales, bearing in mind the needs of individual areas.