§ Mr. Frenchasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will review the effectiveness of the promotional campaign for the Government's home loan scheme for the purpose of increasing the percentage of eligible first-time buyers who participate in the scheme; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. WaldegraveThe Government already make a full range of promotional material for the scheme available on 845W request to the savings and lending institutions which operate it. Growth in owner-occupation has been very marked in recent years and very large numbers of people are buying a house for the first time each year. In 1986–87 there were 670,000 first-time buyers—the highest ever annual figure. In deciding on priorities for publicity expenditure, it would be difficult to justify more resources for an area of housing which is already developing satisfactorily.