§ Mr. A. Lewisasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs whether he will publish in HANSARD a table showing the annual rise or fall in real terms in the commencement and completion of local authority houses, the costs and size, since October 1951, to date, taking that year as being 100; and whether he will also give the precentage rise or fall in each case.
§ Mr. CorfieldMy right hon. Friend cannot give details of average costs and sizes of local authority dwellings since October, 1951, without devoting a great deal of work to re-examination of the tenders submitted.
Appended below is a table showing the annual figures for starts and completions of houses for local authorities and new towns in England and Wales, taking 1951 to be 100.
44W
Year Construction begun Completed 1952 … … 133 117 1953 … … 136 143 1954 … … 116 141 1955 … … 96 115 1956 … … 83 99 1957 … … 79 97 1958 … … 63 80 1959 … … 80 70 1960 … … 65 73 1961 … … 65 66 1962 … … 72 74 1963 … … 85 69
§ Mr. A. Lewisasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs whether he will publish in Hansard a table of figures giving the percentage increase or decrease in the price of a three-bedroom council house for each month since October, 1951, taking that month as equalling 100, and making such adjustments as may be necessary to compensate for any reduction in size over the years.
§ Mr. CorfieldMy right hon. Friend's information is of tender prices which, until firm price tendering was more widely adopted from 1957, onwards, could differ markedly from final costs. He cannot, however, present tender prices on a monthly basis, adjusted for size of dwelling, without re-examining most of the individual tenders for three-bedroomed houses submitted over the period. He does not consider the monthly movement in tender prices would be of sufficient significance to warrant such a labour. For the annual movement of tender prices over the same period I would refer the hon. Member to the answer my light hon. Friend gave him on 5th February.
§ Mr. A. Lewisasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs what, taking October, 1951, as being 100, has been the percentage increase in council-house building for each month to date.
§ Mr. CorfieldQuarterly and annual figures for house completions are published quarterly in the Housing Return and monthly figures are published in the Housing Summary. Both are Command Papers.