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Low-cost Housing
8. Mr. Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to allow local authorities to build more low-cost rented housing. [4882]
Mr. Clappison: Housing associations are now the main providers of new social housing. We expect around 70,000 additional lettings to be provided in 1995-96 through a mixture of public and private funding.
Mr. Miller: How many new starts will there be in 1996 in the low-cost rented sector?
Mr. Clappison: The hon. Gentleman would do better to concentrate on the fact that housing associations provide 27,000 new starts out of a total of 70,000, which does not take account of the value of new social lettings through tenants going on to buy their own homes and the refurbishment of properties. He would do well to look at the value of the housing associations' contribution to providing high-quality property through the involvement of the private financial sector.
Dr. Spink: Does my hon. Friend agree that, where social housing is provided, it should be of the highest possible quality? Will he convey to the Government the thanks of my constituents who have just received a 47 per cent. increase in the housing investment programme, which should be spent on improving the quality of existing council houses in Castle Point, which is currently substandard?
Mr. Clappison: I am happy to convey my hon. Friend's message. He is right to say that we seek to provide high-quality accommodation to meet social need.
Ministry of Defence Housing
9. Mr. O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representation he has made to the Secretary of State for Defence over the planned privatisation of the Ministry of Defence's married quarters estate. [4883]
10. Mr. Jamieson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has made to the Secretary of State for Defence over the planned Ministry of Defence's married quarters estate. [4884]
Mr. Curry:
We have made it clear that we wish to see genuinely surplus property used to provide homes for
Mr. O'Hara:
Does the Minister share my concern that those perfectly good homes are being sold off like so much Army surplus stock when social housing, which is his Department's responsibility, is desperately needed?
Mr. Curry:
The important thing is to ensure that people live in the surplus houses that are available. There are about 70,000 MOD homes, of which 14,000 are empty. That is 14,000 too many. We must ensure that people can live in them. Whether that goes for social housing or for low-cost starter homes appears to me to be much less important. What matters is that they are used.
Mr. Jamieson:
Does the Minister recall that in July 1994, his Department's task force report described the MOD policy of having thousands of homes standing empty as short-sighted and anti-social? Is not it clear to the Minister that Defence Ministers have totally ignored the advice of his Department by having 14,098 empty properties--552 of them in the Prime Minister's constituency? When will he take firm action to ensure that the MOD releases those properties for social housing, as he has said repeatedly that it should?
Mr. Curry:
That is precisely what the MOD now proposes. It is manifestly the case that the programme of disposal has not proceeded quickly enough in the past few years. The MOD has had to cope with "Options for Change", which has meant much shifting of personnel and many changes in personnel in the armed forces, so it needs to ensure that houses are available. What matters now is that we ensure that those houses are used. Regardless of whether those houses are made available for rent, the eventual purchaser will have no interest in holding on to empty stock. He will want to dispose. It is immaterial whether he disposes into the private rented sector or the home ownership sector. What matters is that those houses are used.
Mr. Ian Bruce:
My hon. Friend will be pleased to know that tomorrow--I am sorry, on Friday--on Thursday--[Laughter]--I shall present the keys to some MOD homes to new tenants from Magna housing association in my constituency. Many of those MOD properties will be sold to the private sector. However, where housing associations exist in districts where an enormous number of homes become vacant as a result of MOD changes in constituencies such as mine, will he ensure that they have the funds to recycle those homes into super housing association homes, and to get the very many people on the waiting list into them?
Mr. Curry:
My hon. Friend has always been a stickler for terminological exactitude. [Interruption.] In other words, he knows what day of the week it is. He will know that some housing associations have already shown considerable interest in acquiring that stock and some of them, such as the North housing association, can do so with their own funds and do not need to apply for funding.
I am sure that the purchaser of the properties from the MOD will have no interest in holding on to the stock but will want to dispose of it, some of it to housing associations, who are natural purchasers.
11. Mr. Battle:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received regarding contaminated land. [4885]
Mr. Clappison:
The hon. Gentleman is among those who have made representations, and I am sure that the whole House appreciates the campaign that he has mounted on behalf of those people affected by the asbestos tragedy in Armley. I hope that, for his part, the hon. Gentleman will appreciate what the Environment Protection Act 1995 has done in pressing home again the important principle that the polluter should pay.
Mr. Battle:
I am grateful for the Minister's comments at the start of his answer. When will the Government publish the contaminated land guidance to the Environment Protection Act? In Leeds, there are about 929 hectares of derelict land, about a quarter of which is believed to be contaminated. Would not it be a wise investment now to give the resources to the local authorities to allow them to survey that land and bring it into productive use for homes and jobs?
Mr. Clappison:
The hon. Gentleman knows of the statutory guidance that must be issued, and that consultation must take place before it is issued. We are expecting that consultation to be carried out early next year. In the meantime, those people in Leeds who have an interest in the tragedy of the contamination by asbestos, especially Leeds city council, would do well to reflect on the important principle that the polluter should pay, and the relevance to that principle of recent legal findings on other areas of liability affecting the asbestos tragedy.
Mr. Ashby:
I thank the House. Does my hon. Friend realise that there are many pieces of contaminated land in inner-city areas, which are an eyesore? We cannot really wait for land values to catch up with the cost of dealing with the contaminated land. Does not he realise that there must be some public input in order to remove such eyesores in inner cities?
Mr. Clappison:
My hon. Friend is aware that we have stuck firmly to the principle that the polluter should pay. He will realise the importance of the definitions that we established in the Environment Act 1995 and the regulatory machinery that we put in place to enforce that. I share the sentiments expressed by my hon. Friend: we should deal effectively with the problem of contaminated land in inner city areas and develop those areas.
Mr. Barnes:
Does the Minister agree that opencast mining is not the natural way to deal with contaminated land with coal reserves beneath it? Avenue coke works in my constituency has been closed and the land is highly contaminated--British Coal Property should be aware of the principle that the polluter should pay and should clean the area without inconveniencing local people by introducing opencast mining provisions.
Mr. Clappison:
The hon. Gentleman will realise that we have issued much tougher planning provisions to deal with that issue. Every case will be considered strictly on its merits in the context of those tough provisions.
Anti-social Tenants
12. Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on his proposals to help local authorities deal more effectively with anti-social tenants. [4886]
Mr. Curry: On 18 July and 18 October I announced a substantial package of measures to help local authorities to deal more effectively with anti-social tenants. After discussions with the housing association movement, I intend to extend that package to housing associations.
Mrs. Lait: Many of my constituents, who have been badly affected by the behaviour of anti-social tenants, welcome the measures. Is my hon. Friend aware, however, that many of the victims of anti-social tenants feel unable to give evidence because they are intimidated? Can he give the House an idea of how the victims will be protected by the package?
Mr. Curry: I agree with my hon. Friend. Something that I hear repeatedly as I travel around the country is that people know who cause the problems on estates--it may be just one or two families or their kids--but cannot find a way of dealing with them. Those involved may be taken to court and put on probation or their case may be deferred and they return to the estate and cause problems again. We intend to introduce new powers involving injunctions associated with arrest so that people can take action without fear of intimidation. We also intend to make it possible to use professional witnesses, as some local authorities--mainly Labour authorities--are already doing, to try to remove the element of intimidation so that people can enjoy the right to live peaceably in their own homes.
Ms Ruddock: While the Government's proposals are welcome as far as they go, is it not a scandal that it has taken a decade of rising complaints and 17 deaths in noise disputes to get the Government to act? Does the Minister accept that every citizen has the right to enforcement of the law on noise? If so, when he gives responsibilities to local authorities why does he say that the level of service will depend on local conditions and resources? Where is the money to come from?
Mr. Curry: The hon. Lady confuses noise nuisance with anti-social behaviour. The latter is by far the more serious problem as no one has been materially injured by noise in the way that people have been injured by some anti-social behaviour. Both problems affect the quality of life on housing estates and both must be tackled and I hope that both sets of measures will receive a wide welcome. It is distressing that a number of Labour local authorities appear not to want even to implement the package on anti-social behaviour that we shall make available to them, although sensible authorities such as Manchester will implement it. I hope that the laggards will learn from the winners.
Mr. Hawkins: Following the point that my hon. Friend has rightly made, does he agree that in many of our seaside resorts Labour councillors and Labour activists are themselves unscrupulous landlords? They encourage people from outside the area, who become extremely anti-social tenants when they move in, and cause many of
the social problems. Is that not the reality of Labour local government and does it not show, once again, that Labour is unfit to govern?
Mr. Curry: I am conscious of the problems in seaside resorts around the country caused by the changing nature of activities in those areas and by the people who settle there to collect benefit. We have taken measures under the planning system to resolve those problems and we shall take further measures to deal with houses in multiple occupation. I shall listen to the views of those who believe that additional measures should be taken so that seaside towns can enjoy the prosperity which has been theirs historically and which they deserve for the future.
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