asked the total number of men now employed upon the erection of houses for local authorities by the various schemes sanctioned under the provisions of The Housing and Town Planning Act, 1919, and the maximum number previously so employed at any one time?

On 1st February, 1923, there were 18,470 men employed on State assisted housing schemes-of local authorities under the Housing, Town Planning, etc., Act, 1919. Statistics of the number of men employed on other housing work are not available. The maximum number employed on assisted schemes was in July, 1921, when the number was 149,854.

Arising out of that very big reduction in the number of men employed on building houses, will the right hon. Gentleman make representations to the Prime Minister as to the necessity of introducing the Housing Bill at the earliest possible moment, so that these men may be employed?

I hardly think that is necessary. The Prime Minister is quite well aware of the position.

How long shall we have to wait?

Not long.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, whether he is aware of the bad state of the drainage of sewage in connection with the State-assisted houses built by the Cowbridge Rural District Council at Llantwit Major, Glamorgan, and of the repeated complaints made by the tenants and by the local parish council for months past to the said rural council without avail; and will he take steps to have these drainage defects remedied immediately?

No complaints have been received in regard to the drainage of the houses in question, but I will make inquiries into the matter.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the local parish council have protested to the rural council, and that I have personally visited the spot, and the facts are as stated in the question?

I am afraid that Ministers cannot be responsible for protests which do not reach them. No protest has reached the Minister.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, if he is aware that a considerable amount of slum property in the borough of Poplar has been abandoned; that the local authority has no means of tracing the owners, consequently many people are living under insanitary conditions owing to the local authority being powerless to deal with the matter; and will he, when introducing the new Housing Bill, include such provisions as will enable local authorities to take over such properties without compensation, and either by restoration or rebuilding make them fit for human habitation?

Local authorities already have wide powers under the Housing Acts of acquiring and reconstructing slum properties by means of schemes which, as soon as approved by the Minister, enable the procedure of the Lands Clauses Acts to be applied. These Acts contain special provisions for dealing with cases where owners of property cannot he found. The question whether further legislation is desirable will be considered in connection with the new Housing Bill.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, whether he is aware that there is very considerable overcrowding in various parts of the borough of Poplar, and that this overcrowding has existed for many years past, and results in great sickness and distress amongst the people obliged to crowd together in so unhealthy a manner, and also adds to the death rate in the districts concerned; whether he is aware that his Department, although appealed to on many occasions, has refused permission to the local borough council to acquire sites in Poplar and in Bow on which new houses and flats might be built which would, to some extent, relieve the situation and whether he will give instructions that the Poplar Council shall be given permission to acquire the sites and get on with the provision of houses?

It is understood that the hon. Member is referring to two sites which, after very full consideration, were not approved under the late assisted scheme on grounds of cost. Apart from the question of financial assistance, the approval of the Minister of Health to the purchase of sites by the borough council is not required, and it is understood that the council recently decided to purchase one of the sites.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, whether the Government. has considered the effect of the policy of decontrol of all new houses built from now onwards; and whether, seeing that this would start building, he will say what are the objections, if any, to such a course?

Under the present law, there are no restrictions of any kind affecting new houses, or old houses newly converted into separate fiats or tenements, provided the houses were erected, or converted, after April, 1919. No question of decontrolling such houses, therefore, arises.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, if he will grant the Return (Housing of the Working Classes) standing in the name of the hon. Member for the Westhoughton Division of Lancashire.—[Return showing, for each of the local authorities in, England and Wales for the purposes of Part II of the Housing of the Working Classes Act, 1890, the estimated number of houses for the wording classes within. the meaning of the Housing, Town Planning, & c., Act, 1919, in, their district; how Many of these houses have, during the four years ended on the 31st day of December, 1922, been inspected by the local authority with a view to ascertaining what closing orders should be issued or what notices should be served under Section 15 of the Housing, Town Planning, & c., Act, 1909, or Section 28 of the Housing Town. Planning, & c., Act, 1919; the number of closing orders issued during that period by the local authority; the number of such notices served during that periodby the local authority; how many of those closing orders have been determined on completion of the necessary repairs; how many of such undetermined closing orders have been enforced; in how many cases the requirements of the notices so served have been duly complied with; in how many cases where those requirements have not been duly complied with the local authority have themselves executed the repairs necessary to render the premises in all respects reasonable, fit for human habitation; in how many cases the failure to enforce a notice served under Section 28 of the Rousing, Town Planning, & c., Act, 1919, has been due to the proviso to Sub-section (4) of that Section; in how many cases the failure to enforce a notice served under Section 15 of the Housing, Town. Planning, & c., Act, 1909, has been due to Sub-section. (4) of that Section; and haw!many cases any representation or report of the medical officer of health of the district that a house is unfit or not in all respects reasonably fit for human habitation, has not been acted upon by the local authority either by the issue of a closing order or by the service of notice under Section 15 of the Hosing, Town Planning, of & Act, 1909, or Section 28 of the Housing, Town Planning, & c., Act, 1919.]

The information asked for could only be obtained at the cost of much labour and expense which it would not be justifiable to incur or ask local authorities to incur at the present time. A summary has, however, been prepared from the reports of medical officers of health for 1920, covering substantially the points on which the non Member asks for information, and I shall be glad to send him a copy of this together with similar information for 1921 so far as such information is at present available.

asked the Parliamentary. Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, if he is aware that the Askern Main Colliery Company, Askeran, near Doncaster, has given notice to some 40 tenants to leave their houses because they have started work at some other colliery; that, in view of the housing shortage, the men cannot find alternative accommodation, and now the colliery company are asking the Court for ejectment orders and, seeing that a Government subsidy was granted towards the erection of these houses, what steps will he take to prevent such action?

The question as to the right of the colliery company to obtain possession of the houses is one for the decision of the Courts, and the Ministry of Health has no jurisdiction in the matter.

Will the Minister responsible for this Department consider the advisability of preventing this power being used under the new Housing Bill?

That question will be taken into consideration with regard to the new Housing Bill. I cannot say more at the moment.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, if he is aware that a very large number of what are known as middle-class houses are now let to two, three, or four families, and that therefore the decontrol of houses of rents of over £50 per annum will affect the rents of persons in receipt of small incomes; and will he inquire into this matter?

As the hon. Member is, no doubt, aware, the Increase of Rent and Mortgage Interest (Restrictions) Act, 1920, applies to a part of a house which is let as a separate dwelling, and its application is governed by the amount of the standard rent or rateable value of the part and not by that of the whole house. Accordingly, in the case which the hon. Member has put, the consequences which he apprehends would not follow if the parts of the house which are separately let fall within the category of dwelling-houses which continue under control.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, what number of new houses have been completed since 1st January, 1919, up to 15th November, 1922, the number completed since 15th November, 1922, and the number in the course of erection or contemplated erection?

Under the State Assisted Housing Schemes 145,771 houses were completed by local authorities and public utility societies up to the 1st November, 1922. Since that date a further 9,263 were completed by 1st February last and 20,966 were either under construction or had not been commenced. In addition, 39,161 houses have been erected by private builders with the aid of the Grant under Section 1 of the Housing (Additional Powers) Act, 1919. Information as to the number of houses erected outside these schemes is not available.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, if he can state the number and class of houses erected by utility societies under the various Housing Acts since 1st January, 1919?

4,545 houses have been authorised in connection with assisted housing schemes of public utility societies, and on the 1st February last 4,115 had been completed. Approximately, half of these houses contain a parlour, living-room and three or four bedrooms, 362 were flats and the remainder non-parlour houses with two, three, or four bedrooms.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, whether he will inquire into the projected demolition of houses acquired by the London County Council for an extension of Kennington Park: and what action he proposes to take in view of the present serious shortage of houses?

Inquiries have been made into the matter to which the hon. Member refers and it is understood that the London County Council have purchased certain dilapidated property with a view to the future extension of Kennington Park, hut it is not proposed to demolish any houses in the near future.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Overseas Trade Department, as representing the Ministry of Health, whether he is aware of the growing feeling of insecurity among consumers of gas for lighting and heating purposes consequent upon dangers arising out of leakages; whether his Department has any information showing the number of complaints received from consumers in this connection; and whether he will make a statement as to the powers of the Ministry and of local authorities on the matter?

I have been asked to reply. I am aware that recent occurrences have given rise to some apprehensions, but I have no information as to the numbers of complaints made to gas undertakings by consumers. Neither the Ministry of Health nor the local authorities have any powers which are applicable, but the Board of Trade, as the Department charged with the administration of the Gas Regulation Act, 1920, are in consultation with the gas undertakings and local authorities with a view to combined action in the matter. I may draw the attention of the hon. Member to the conclusions of a conference recently convened by the Board, which were printed in the OFFICIAL REPORT for the 19th February; also to the speech of the President of the Board of Trade in this House on 21st February; of which I am sending him copies.