§ Mr. Kaufmanasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the average increase in (a) rents of private landlord accommodation, and (b) council 604W rents for (i) 1970–74 and (ii) 1975–79; and what is his estimate for (a) and (b) for 1980–84.
§ Mr. StanleyAverage net unrebated rents per household in England and Wales are estimated as follows:
£/week Private rented sector: unfurnished Local Authority 1970 … 1.84 2.38 1974 … 2.74 3.81 1975 … 3.23 4.40 1978 … 5.17 5.95 1979 … Not available 6.56 Sources: Family Expenditure Survey; returns to Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy; and retail price index returns to Department of Employment.
Rents in the private rented sector are based on information derived from the family expenditure survey and include registered, controlled and agreed rents. Because they are subject to sampling error, estimates of changes between any two years should therefore be treated with caution. FES results for 1979 are not available. The furture level of private rents will depend on future rent registrations and on individual agreements between landlords and tenants, and the level of council rents on the decisions of local authorities.