§ Mr. George Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to be able to announce the methods by which the £100 million building society funds will be used to make up for the cut in local authority mortgages; and what reports he has had on the number of cases in which local authorities have been obliged to default on contractual obligations in the absence of such funds.
§ Mr. ArmstrongMy Department's regional offices are collecting details of local authorities' lending policies in order to identify the areas in which mortgage finance is most needed. Discussions will be arranged between local authorities and the building societies as soon as this information is available. I am not aware24W of any commitments entered into by local authorities before the date of Circular 64/75 which cannot now be met. Local authorities will be permitted to borrow sufficient funds to enable them to meet their commitments as defined in the circular.