§ Mr. John Fraserasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of expenditure by local authorities under the Housing Defects Act for 1984–85.
§ Mr. GowThe Act, and a scheme of assistance in respect of prefabricated reinforced concrete houses designed before 1960, comes into effect on 1 December 1984. Local authorities will not incur capital expenditure under the Act until applications have been determined and payments have been made. Payments do not fall to be made until the reinstatement works, or stages of reinstatement works, or repurchase, have been completed. As the scheme comes into effect with only four months of the financial year 1984–85 remaining, I estimate that expenditure this year will be small.