§ 8. Mr. John M. Taylor (Solihull)If he will make a statement about the level of council house debt in Scotland. [56108]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Mr. Calum Macdonald)As at 1 April 1998, council house debt in Scotland was estimated to be £3.9 billion.
§ Mr. TaylorWho is financing all that debt? Can it be that the taxpayers of the rest of the United Kingdom, including my constituents, are underwriting housing debt in Scotland?
§ Mr. MacdonaldThe hon. Gentleman is wrong on both counts. In fact, council tenants service debt through their rents. If the hon. Gentleman wishes to attempt comparisons between England and Scotland, I can tell him that the average council house debt is pretty similar in both countries. The total council house debt in England is £20 billion.
§ Miss Anne Begg (Aberdeen, South)I congratulate my hon. Friend on the forward-looking policy that the Government are about to introduce in order to bring about much-needed investment in Scottish council housing through the new housing partnership. Will he confirm that that falls very far short of privatisation? It is nothing to do with privatisation; it is about giving council housing back to tenants and local communities, so that they can invest the money that they need to make their houses better.
§ Mr. MacdonaldI can give my hon. Friend an absolute assurance to that effect. We are increasing investment in housing by 40 per cent. over the next three years from the level of investment that we inherited. The object of new housing partnerships is indeed to modernise Scottish housing stock, to lever in new investment on top of the public-sector investment and to provide real community control over housing, along with real powers for tenants, in their own neighbourhoods, over their own houses.
§ Mr. Alex Salmond (Banff and Buchan)Can the Minister answer a simple question about the Government's approach to housing? If it is possible to offer, as a carrot or incentive, the writing off of debt for private partnership companies, why is it not possible to offer the writing off of debt to councils throughout Scotland?
§ Mr. MacdonaldThere are two reasons for the transfer to community ownership. First, it will allow the new community landlords to lever new investment into housing, on top of the public-sector investment that is already being provided. Secondly, it will provide real powers for local communities and the tenants who live in them.