§ Mr. Wilsonasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing the percentage of gross national product invested in housing for the decades 1954 to 1964, 1964 to 1974 and 1974 to 1984, in each of the following countries: the United Kingdom, France, West Germany, the Republic of Ireland and Japan.
§ Sir George YoungThe available information allowing a comparison between all countries is given in the table. However, international differences in building costs, population growth, and internal migration affect comparisons of this kind.
50W
Residential construction as percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) Average Country 1960–67 1968–73 1974–81 1960–81 France 6.0 6.9 6.7 6.5 Germany 7.3 7.2 6.2 6.9 Ireland 3.2 4.5 6.3 4.7 Japan 5.2 7.2 7.3 6.5 United Kingdom 3.3 3.5 3.2 3.3