§ Mr. Litherlandasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps are being taken to prevent those vulnerable parts of the national housing stock from further deterioration and ultimate demolition.
§ Sir George YoungThe Government's policies are designed to safeguard the condition of the housing stock, and to give priority to those houses in the worst condition. The Green Paper "Home Improvement — A New Approach" (Cmnd. 9513) includes new proposals for improving private sector housing, including the suggestion that mandatory grants should be extended so that they are available to deal with unfit houses wherever renovation is appropriate and the owner meets the proposed eligibility test.
§ Mr. Litherlandasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps are being taken by Her Majesty's Government to prevent the construction of low capital cost housing with high maintenance costs.
§ Sir George YoungThose who commission and design housing are responsible for striking a reasonable balance between capital and maintenance costs. To inform them about unnecessary costs which arise from defective design and construction, my Department has set up a housing defects prevention unit at the building research establishment. With the advice of the local authority associations, the unit has issued more than 60 defect action sheets over the last three years.