HC Deb 29 July 1982 vol 28 cc721-3W
Mr. Dewar

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give the total number of vacant houses in Scotland; and how many of these are privately-owned and how many are owned by local authorities, housing associations, new town development corporations and the Scottish Special Housing Association.

Mr. Allan Stewart

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 July to the hon. Member for Dundee, West (Mr. Ross)—[Vol. 28, c.179]. Of the figure of 32,000 public sector properties there quoted, 3,200 were housing association properties. No further disaggregation is available to me.

Mr. Dewar

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the numbers of public sector dwellings which consist of (a) one or two apartments, (b) three apartments and (c) five or more apartments.

Mr. Allan Stewart

The information requested is as follows:

Number of public sector dwellings at 30 September 1981
Size of dwelling Number
1 or 2 apartments 150,407
3 apartments 510,147
4 apartments 335,096
5 or more apartments 41,299
TOTAL 1,036,949

Mr. Dewar

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give the number of houses in Scotland which lack the following amenities: (a) inside sanitation, (b) a fixed bath or shower or (c) a wash-hand basin.

Mr. John MacKay

The information is not available in precisely the form requested. In the 1981 census, 41,853 households were recorded as having no fixed bath or shower. 18,440 households had no flush toilet inside the dwelling. No question on availability of wash-hand basins was asked in the census.

Mr. Dewar

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give the total number of public sector dwellings improved by local authorities, new towns and the Scottish Special Housing Association each year since 1979; how many of these dwellings were built before 1946; and how many were non-traditional houses.

Mr. Allan Stewart

Information covering the improvement of public sector dwellings is published in Scottish Housing Statistics No. 16, table 18, for the period up to the end of 1981. This publication is available in the Library. The details available do not extend to the age and type of dwellings improved which is not collected centrally.

Mr. Dewar

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will estimate the number of (a) publicly owned and (b) privately owned houses in Scotland which require treatment for (i) condensation and (ii) rising-penetrating damp.

Mr. Allan Stewart

Local authority returns for 1981 suggest that about 100,000 houses in Scotland may require some kind of treatment for condensation and about 25,000 for rising-penetrating damp. No estimates by tenure are available.

Mr. Dewar

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the number of houses improved and demolished in housing action areas each year since 1974.

Mr. Allan Stewart

The information requested is published in Scottish Housing Statistics No. 11, table 30, for the period April 1978 to March 1980 and No. 15, table 23, for 1980–81, but is not available for earlier years.