§ Mr. Brayasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the average cost of building a house in a new town, including the cost of providing services, the average cost of bringing older houses up to the standards required for improvement grants, and the number of such houses that can be modernised in relation to one new construction.
§ Mr. ChannonThe average cost in 1971 of a house built by a development corporation in a new town was estimated to be £5,500. This includes the cost of land, construction, siteworks, associated roads, and water and sewerage services. In the same year the average grant-aided expenditure on each dwelling improved with the help of a discretionary grant was £1,113. No answer can be given to the last part of the Question because no figures are available of the cost of non-grant-aided work needed to bring houses which were improved into a state of good repair. But expenditure on bringing older houses up to modernstandards is money well spent.