§ 63. Mr. Danceasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs, in view of the fact that a local authority, which is interested in acquiring property and land within another local authority's boundary, is entitled to send officials to seek information about the ownership of such property when a local inquiry is pending to decide whether or not such acquisition is to be allowed, and in view of the recent case in which the Birmingham City Council took such action, six weeks before an inquiry took place, in the constituency of the hon. Member for Bromsgrove, including the threatening of householders with compulsory purchase orders and requests for the completion of detailed forms, details of which action have been sent to him and of the anxiety thereby caused to residents in the Bromsgrove division, if he will re-examine the situation with a view to introducing amending legislation to alter the present procedure.
Dr. HillAs I understand the position, the city council were doing no more than seeking information about the ownership and tenure of land. They have informed me that they began this before they knew that an inquiry was to be held and stopped when they learned that there would be one. I do not think that amending legislation is required.