§ Mr. Tebbitasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress he is making in establishing regional working parties with builders and local authorities to consider obstacles to releasing land; and by what date he requires that their surveys should be completed.
§ Mr. Graham PageA programme of joint consultations with local authorities and representatives of the building industry on the supply and development of land for housing is in hand in all regions. The arrangements are informal and vary from region to region according to circumstances. For example, in some regions there are separate consultations for subdivisions of the regions. The meetings are not conducting region-wide land surveys but are attempting to find practical solutions to particular land shortages and will continue until the problems have been resolved. The Action Group for London Housing, formed in November last, has also been holding meetings on London's housing problems.
§ Mr. Tebbitasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if his policy that enough land should be provided in the outer metropolitan area to enable 30,000 houses to be built each year has been superseded by the general intention of Circular 10/70 that more land should be released than previously envisaged.
§ Mr. Graham PageCircular 10/70 was intended to suggest to local authorities ways in which sufficient land could be made available to meet growing housing demands. Other measures since taken, including current discussions with local authorities and builders' representatives, are equally important in helping to achieve the broader objective (for the Outer Metropolitan area as elsewhere) that more houses should be built where there is suitable land.