§ 8. Mr. EdwardsTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many dwellings for general needs housing were completed in the Monmouth constituency by Monmouth borough council and by housing associations in 1981 and 1991.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettIn 1981, 67 social housing units were completed. There are 108 under construction at the moment.
§ Mr. EdwardsI am grateful to the Minister, although he has not answered the question that I asked. I asked him how many houses had been completed in 1991, and I will tell him the answer. The local authority completed nil houses in 1991. Housing associations completed 33. The people of my constituency are appalled that Monmouth borough council has millions of pounds tied up from the sale of council houses and cannot use that money for housing. Will the Minister use his powers to enable local authorities to provide houses for homeless people, whether through local authorities or housing associations, jobs for redundant construction workers, and new business contracts for the building companies which are going bankrupt?
§ Mr. BennettThe hon. Gentleman is wrong. Local authorities can use 25 per cent. of their right-to-buy receipts for capital purposes and 75 per cent. for redemption of debt on housing revenue account, and in Wales we have a special offer whereby local authorities which sell land for low-cost housing may use 100 per cent. of receipts for capital purposes. I am sorry that local 8 authorities throughout Wales, whose total debt on housing revenue account amounts to £1.1 billion, redeemed only £14 million of that debt last year.