§ Mr. Welshasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what specifically Scottish studies he has initiated concerning measures to shorten the process of designing and building houses.
§ Mr. William RossMy Department has initiated the following studies, specifically aimed at shortening the time taken to design and build houses:
- 1. Survey of overall Site Productivity in Scotland.
- 2. Productivity Survey on Selected Housing Sites.
- 3. Development Project on Site Productivity.
- 4. Preparation of Standard Metric House Plans.
- 5. External Wall Construction on Exposed Sites.
§ Mr. Welshasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what, from international sources available to him, is the expenditure on housing as a proportion of the GDP in Norway, Sweden, Austria, and Finland; and what is the comparable figure for Scotland.
§ Mr. William RossImportant differences in definition and in other respects make meaningful comparisons impossible. But I would refer the hon. Member to the replies given by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for the Environment to the hon. Member for Merioneth (Mr. Thomas) on 9th and 12th December 1975—[Vol. 902, c. 132–3 and 389–90]. It is estimated that, in 1974, expenditure on new housing and grant aided improvement was equivalent to between 4 per cent. and 5 per cent. of the Scottish gross domestic product at factor cost.
§ Mr. Welshasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what, from international 626W sources available to him, is the latest figure for the number of housing completions per 1,000 of the population in Norway, Sweden, Austria and Finland compared with the figure for Scotland.
§ Mr. William RossI would refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for the Environment to the hon. Member for Merioneth (Mr. Thomas) on 12th December 1975—[Vol. 902, c. 390–1]. The comparable figure for Scotland is 5.4 dwellings per 1,000 inhabitants in 1974.