§ Mr. RENDALLasked the President of the Board of Agriculture what is the total amount of land, exclusive of houses and buildings, bought by county councils for the purposes of the Small Holdings Acts; the total purchase price of same; what the sinking fund charges for capital and interest are per annum on such amount; and the total amount of sinking fund charges on the houses and buildings found upon the land at the time of purchase and on the new houses, buildings, and alterations to existing buildings erected by the county councils?
§ Mr. RUNCIMAN78,871 acres of land had been purchased by county councils up to the end of 1911 for the purposes of the Small Holdings Act, and the price paid for it and the houses and buildings thereon was £2,493,121. It is not possible to state separately the price or acreage of the land alone, but for the purpose of arriving at the period for which the loans can be sanctioned an apportionment of the total purchase price is made between the land and the houses and buildings thereon, and in those cases in which loans have teen sanctioned the total amount apportioned to the 349W land is £2,200,550, and to the houses and buildings £195,706. On the assumption that the loans are raised at 3½ per cent., the interest amounts to £77,019 in respect of the land, and to £6,949 in respect of the houses and buildings. The sinking fund charges amount to £5,263 and £2,314 respectively. Loans amounting to £208,689 have been sanctioned in respect of new works of adaptation, including repairs and alterations to existing buildings, and the interest on these loans amounts to £7,304, and the sinking fund charges to £4,040.