§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many council houses have been sold to tenants at discounted prices which were less than the outstanding loan charges on those houses; what is the total cost of this shortfall to local authorities, and what arrangements have been made to compensate them; and if he will make a statement on the financial consequences of the further provisions proposed in paragraph 3.11 of his recent White Paper on housing.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonInformation on the relationship between selling price and outstanding debt is not held centrally. At present, provision is made under the right-to-buy legislation for discount to be restricted in certain instances where the discounted selling price would fall below the amount of debt outstanding. Any disadvantage to authorities by amending these provisions, as the White Paper proposes, would be outweighed by the general benefits accruing to authorities from council house sales.