Housing Starts (Hansard, 24 May 1984)

§ Baroness Lane-Fox
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, 167,000 private dwellings were started in Great Britain in 1983, 19 per cent. more than in 1982.

§ Baroness Lane-Fox
My Lords, I thank my noble friend the Minister for that very heartening reply. It seems to me that this shows credit both to the improving economic climate and to the declining interest rates, and also credit to everyone engaged in the building industry. However, may I ask my noble friend whether he can compare these figures with the record of the previous administration?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, without unduly wearying the House I do not think I could do that in detail, but I can confirm that more private houses and flats were started last year than in any year during the last Labour administration. As regards the credit which my noble friend gives to the building industry, yes, it has proved itself very responsive to new demands and the improving economic climate. I, too, congratulate the industry.

§ Lord Broxbourne
My Lords, can my noble friend the Minister say— and I appreciate that, without notice, to give precise figures may not be possible—what proportion of these houses were built under the certification and registration procedures of the National Housebuilding Council? Is my noble friend, in general, satisfied with the contribution of those procedures to the high standards of private housing?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, again, I am afraid I do not have the detailed breakdown that my noble friend requests, but I most certainly agree that the certification scheme has produced houses of a very high quality and the Government are, in general, satisfied with the working of the scheme.

§ Lord Graham of Edmonton
My Lords, does not the Minister acknowledge that the improvements in the past two years come after five disastrous years that preceded them, not only for the house purchaser but also for the construction industry? Is he not prepared to acknowledge that in 1982 the number of public sector starts was the lowest for 60 years— since 1924 when Neville Chamberlain was in charge? When are the Government to produce a balanced house building programme instead of concentrating on selling off the nation's housing assets at knock-down prices?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, my noble friend Lord Bellwin and I have frequently made the point that selling off public sector housing does not make houses one whit less available for living in as units. As regards the substantive point made by the noble Lord, Lord Graham, yes, he is perfectly right, we are starting from a very low base, but the fact that there is this very significant improvement— I have just mentioned the figure of 19 per cent.— means that more houses are becoming available for people to live in. The houses are being built and this is a sign of the economic recovery, as my noble friend suggested. It is a fact that if one looks back over housing figures for the past 20, 30 or 40 years the slumps and increases in those figures coincide almost exactly with the general economic climate.

§ Lord Cledwyn of Penrhos
My Lords, in an effort to help the noble Baroness, is it not the case that the public sector housing programme has been cut by nearly half by the present Government? I am quoting up-to-date figures. It is not further the case that there are la million unfit dwellings in this country? Is the Minister satisfied, and is his right honourable friend satisfied, that they are on course in helping the millions of people living in inadequate accommodation in Britain now?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords. in a series of questions that I answered in the House recently on grants for renovations I pointed out— if my memory serves me correctly— that some 300,000 grants were given last year and that this has gone a long way towards improving the situation to which the noble Lord draws attention. Obviously one can always spend more money on any particular project which noble Lords or the Government have in mind, but this must be within one's overall financial and budgetary strategy across the whole economy. I think I have said enough.

§ Lord Mackie of Benshie
My Lords, the Minister having said that there has been an improvement, even from a low base, can he tell us what proportion of the capacity of the building industry is being used at the present time, and how many unemployed workers there are in the building industry?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, that is an extremely wide question. If I may, I shall look up the details and write to the noble Lord. I would make the general point that it is very often extremely difficult to identify building workers, whether employed or unemployed, because they do not always register.

§ Lord Kilmarnock
My Lords, will the Minister tell the House how many people are registered with local authorities as homeless, and whether that represents an increase on earlier figures?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, that really is far, far wide of the Question. If the noble Lord would like to put down yet another Question on this subject, I shall do my best to answer it.

§ Baroness Lane-Fox
My Lords, can my noble friend the Minister confirm that, compared with 1979, there 333 are now one million more home owners; that that is largely due to the Government's policy of selling council houses; and that there are a number of others among the people who would be more in favour of paying a mortgage than paying rent?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
Yes, my Lords; I can certainly confirm the success of the Government's right-to-buy policy. There are many people up and down the country who have seen the way ahead in exactly the way that my noble friend herself has seen it this morning.

§ Lord Molloy
My Lords, is it not a fact that most of the council houses being sold were built by Labour authorities, and therefore the real credit belongs to them?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, perhaps it might be appropriate if I reminded the House that the Question on the Order Paper refers to private housing starts.

Lord Wallace of Coslany
My Lords, is the noble Lord aware that the fact that there are a million more home owners does not make the slightest difference to the large number of people still waiting for a house in which to live?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, what makes the difference to the large number of people waiting for a house in which to live is, first, the size of council waiting lists. This is also reflected in the number of empty properties that councils have on their books, as well as the very encouraging private housing starts to which I have referred this morning.