§ 53. Mr. Spriggsasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government to what extent local housing authorities can sell 50W their houses without his sanction and whether he will take steps to require any such authority to refund all the housing subsidies received by them, following the sale of any such property.
§ Mr. GreenwoodLocal authorities require my consent under Section 104 of the Housing Act, 1957 to the sale of any house on land required or appropriated for the purposes of Part V of the Act and on which Exchequer subsidy has been paid. This covers the vast majority of council houses and it is under this power that I have continued the general consent to the sale of houses, subject to the conditions set out in Circular No.24/ 67. The number sold over the past three years has averaged 2,748 houses per annum.
As regards the second part of the Question, no further subsidy payments are made when houses are sold but I have no power to require the repayment of past subsidies.