§ Mr. Hutchinsonasked the Minister of Health what are the conditions under which supplies of labour and materials for the repair of damaged houses are made specially available by the Government; and, in particular, what pressure of accommodation in such areas is considered necessary to justify such supplies being made available?
§ Mr. E. BrownFirst-aid repairs carried out by local authorities to war damaged houses are given the highest priority and the necessary labour and materials are provided as rapidly as possible. Under the scheme recently instituted by the Government for accelerating the repair by local authorities of seriously damaged houses in order to restore them to use, a special priority is given and labour and materials are being made available. Other repair work is dependent upon the immobile labour in the district after high priority requirements have been met and the arrangements provide for the supply of labour and materials and for the issue of licences for controlled materials such as timber as may be required. For the position of private owners wishing to do their own repairs, I would refer to the reply1252W given on 12th May to my hon. Friend the Member for Moss Side (Mr. Rostron Duckworth) by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works.