§ Dr. Hampsonasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of local government capital work was awarded to direct labour departments, in the last year for which figures are available; and what is the value of such contracts.
§ Mr. KaufmanAggregate statistics are not available of the value of contracts for local government capital work awarded to direct labour departments.
The Department does, however, collect figures for the total value of new building work carried out by the direct labour departments of local authorities in Great Britain in the first and third quarters of each year. For 1973, the last 329W year for which two quarters' figures are available, the estimated value of the output of new building work—excluding repair and maintenance and housing improvement work—by these direct labour departments was of the order of £150 millions, which was probably about 8 per cent. of the total output of new building work for local authorities in that year.