§ Captain TERRELLasked the Minister of Health the number of eases in which private persons constructing, or ready to construct, working-class houses have been met by a refusal of their local council to submit them to the Ministry for the subsidy; and whether in all such cases he will, to stimulate building, have inquiry made by his Department as to the merits of the disagreement?
§ Sir W. JOYNSON-HICKSThe Housing Act, 1923, requires that local authorities shall submit their general scheme for the assistance of private enterprise to the Minister of Health for approval, but they are not required to submit to the Minister the proposals of individual builders for the construction of houses with the aid of a subsidy. Where it appears that private enterprise is prepared with a, subsidy to erect working class houses, but the local authority are unwilling to adopt a scheme for the assistance of private enterprise, I have in practice made inquiries into the circumstances, with the result that in some cases the authority has reconsidered its decision. There have been very few such cases.