§ Lord Aucklandasked Her Majesty's Government:
What progress has been made in the preparation of an order under paragraph 1 of Schedule 24 to the Housing Act 1980.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of the Environment (Lord Bellwin)My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Wales and my honourable friend the Minister for Housing and Construction have today laid before Parliament an order under paragraph 1 of Schedule 24 395WA to the Housing Act 1980 under which local authorities will have a duty to exercise their powers to require adequate means of escape from fire in respect of houses in multiple occupation of three storeys or more (excluding basements) with a gross floor area in excess of 500 square metres.
This order follows concern expressed during the proceedings on the Housing Bill 1980 about fire safety in hostels, and follows detailed consultation with local 396WA authority associations. The objective has been to draw the terms of the order sufficiently widely to cover those hostels where the potential risk is greatest without making it so wide that a major new administrative burden would be imposed on local authorities.
House adjourned at one minute past nine o'clock.