§ Mrs. MaddockTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will estimate for each county in the United Kingdom the number of unfit properties, together with the distribution of these properties by tenure; and if he will make a statement. [455]
§ Mr. ClappisonLocal authorities in England are requested to provide information on dwellings in their area which are unfit—that is, fail to meet all the fitness criteria in section 83 of schedule 9 to the 1989 Local Government and Housing Act—in their annual housing investment programme returns. Separate figures are requested for local authority, housing association, other public sector and private sector dwellings. The figures provided are local authorities' own estimates and are not necessarily compiled on a consistent basis.
The reported estimates for 1 April 1994, the latest date for which figures are available, are given in the 1994 "HIP1 All Items Print", a copy of which is in the Library. The print includes county totals where estimates have been provided by all the authorities in the county.
For information for the rest of the United Kingdom I would refer the hon. Member to the Secretaries of State for Scotland, for Wales and for Northern Ireland.