§ Mr. Winnickasked the Prime Minister whether the speech by the Minister for Information Technology the hon. Member for Chertsey and Walton (Mr. Pattie) to the annual dinner of Rank Xerox on 16 June, in so far as it related to council housing, represents Government policy; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. Patchettasked the Prime Minister whether the speech by the hon. Member for Chertsey and Walton (Mr. Pattie) to the annual dinner of Rank Xerox on 16 June, in so far as it related to council housing, represents the policy of Her Majesty's Government; and if she will make a statement.
§ The Prime MinisterThe principal aim of the Government's housing policy is to encourage home ownership and nearly 960,000 council homes have been sold to their tenants since we came into office. We recognise that local authority housing continues to have an important role to play, particularly in catering for those whose needs cannot be met in the private sector. We have encouraged local authorities to improve the management of their housing, with particular emphasis on the development of partnership with the private sector. We have enabled the renovation of more than half a million council houses, considerably more than under the previous Government. We have also launched the urban housing renewal unit to seek ways of improving the quality of life in rundown council estates.