§ Major GLYNasked the Minister of Health (1) whether materials required by the building trade having been classified by the Local Government Board Committee of May, 1917, into uncontrolled, including timber, breeze partition blocks, sundry materials, glue, oil, putty, etc., and minerals, partially controlled, including bricks, lime, gas-pipes and fittings, metal goods, wrought-iron or steel tanks and cisterns, slates, paints, varnish, etc., controlled, including tiles roofing, tiles glazed, and for floors, earthenware pipes, sanitary earthenware, lead pipes, sheet lead, portland cement, iron castings, wallpaper, glass, wrought-iron tubes and boilers, there is any intention to alter this method of classification to be in accord with present-day conditions; what are the alterations, or additions, required to bring the above list up to date; what is the present-day price of each category of materials; and what were the equivalent prices in 1917, 1920, and 1923, respectively;
(2) What proportion of the materials used in the construction of State approved types of houses are subject to control by combinations among manufacturers and merchants, and how do these figures compare with the estimate made in 1917, which, for building materials, exclusive of overhead charges and labour, gave the proportions as 24.68 controlled, 33.25 partially controlled, and 42.07 uncontrolled, and for the same house, but including labour and overhead charges, exclusive of cost of site developed, 14.64 controlled, 19.68 partially controlled, 24.94 uncontrolled, and 40.74 for labour and overhead expenses, giving in each case the equivalent figures for the three types of house authorised under the Housing Acts, and showing also the percentage value of the subsidy, and the corresponding figures for 1920 and 1923, respectively?
Mr. CHAMBERLAINI presume that my hon. and gallant Friend in these questions is referring to a Report, apparently made in 1917, which was pre-2242W sented to the Committee on Trusts appointed by the Ministry of Reconstruction in 1918 and was printed by that Committee as an addendum to their Report. I am not aware of the data on which the classification and calculations quoted in the questions were based and could not undertake to say what alterations are necessary to bring them up to date. I observe that a footnote to the Report states that it was already out of date when published. The statistics for which my hon. Friend asks are not available, but the Reports of the Committee which I appointed to survey the prices of building materials have published statements recording the prices of a considerable number of building materials at various dates, and I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of one of their most recent Reports.