§ Baroness Davidasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will substantiate the figure of half a million elderly tenants being denied the right to buy mentioned by Lord Skelmersdale (col. 1040, Official Report, 3rd November), and, if this is not the correct figure, whether they will supply it.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of the Environment (Lord Skelmersdale)The latest available estimate of public sector non-sheltered dwellings for the elderly in England and Wales is 347,000. As many of these dwellings will be occupied by more than one tenant, it is not unreasonable to assume that some half a million tenants will be affected by the new legislation; but I was not intending to give a precise estimate on this point in the debate on 4th November.