§ Mr. John Ellisasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many houses have so far been rehabilitated by the Northern Ireland Housing Executive; what was the cost per unit; and whether he is satisfied that the policy of rehabilitation is preferable to one of concentration on new house building.
§ Mr. Carter,pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 12th January 1978, Vol. 941, c. 834], gave the following information:
It is estimated that up to 31st December 1977 4,600 dwellings have been rehabilitated by the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, comprising 2,750 dwellings in urban areas and 1,850 on 69W rural areas. The current average cost per unit for rehabilitation schemes being approved by the Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland) is of the order of £8,500 in urban areas and £5,500 in rural areas.
I believe that the right approach is a balanced one of rehabilitating houses where this is justified on social and economic grounds of replacing other older houses.