§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the number of (i)) unfit dwellings, (ii) dwellings fit but lacking basic amenities arid (iii) non-standard dwellings in need of renovations in(a) Oldham, (b) the north-west and (c) England and the percentage of stock that these numbers represent in each case.
§ Mr. Michael Spicer[holding answer 18 October 1990]: Local authorities are asked for these figures in their annual housing investment programme returns; the figures are not necessarily comparable as authorities' criteria differ arid they are not consistent with national and regional estimates from the 1986 English house condition survey.
The figures based on local authority returns for April 1989 are as follows:
in table 6.7 of the annual "Housing and Construction Statistics 1979–1989: Great Britain" and for the first half of 1990 in table 1.5 of part 1 of the June quarter 1990 edition of "Housing and Construction Statistics: Great Britain". Copies of both are in the Library.
The statistics cover wheelchair dwellings provided by local authorities, new towns and housing associations. There are no reliable estimates of the number of such dwellings built privately nor does the Department make forecasts for future periods.