§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will list the properties and moves under the national mobility scheme that were (a) outside the Greater London Council area and (b) outside metropolitan areas; and what steps have been taken to monitor the results of the tenants' exchange scheme announced by the Minister of Housing on 22 February.
§ Mr. StanleyThe national mobility scheme operates both between counties (ie. at a national level) and within counties. By the end of the scheme's first year 1981–82, 2,737 moves between counties had been recorded as having taken place, of which 1,892 were outside Greater London. In addition 650 moves within counties outside Greater London were reported during this period, but, for a number of reasons, this figure is thought substantially to under-state the scale of movement within counties.
There are no monitoring arrangements on the results of the tenants' exchange scheme since there is no practical means of requiring tenants who do exchange under the scheme to notify the Department. However I receive regular reports of the number of registrations made under the scheme which currently exceed 45,000.
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§ Mr. Freudasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of the annual need was met in the first year of the national mobility scheme; what was the number of moves in the 12 months prior to the setting up of the scheme; and what is the estimated cost of the operation to housing authorities and the national mobility office.
§ Mr. StanleyThe first annual report of the national mobility scheme, copies of which were placed in the Library in August, shows that 2,737 moves across county boundaries in England and Wales were recorded in 1981–82. This represents just over 20 per cent. of the nominations recorded. A further 1,327 such moves were in hand, representing about another 10 per cent. of nominations. Comparable figures for the 12 month period before the scheme was launched are not available. The cost to each housing authority of operating the scheme is not available but is likely to be small. The cost of the national mobility office in 1981–82, paid for by grant by my Department under powers in section 46 of the Housing Act 1980, was about £66,000.