asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many homes administered by the Northern Ireland Housing Executive have been reported as suffering from dampness; and what methods are used to ascertain whether this dampness is attributable to bad design, condensation or disrepair.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1985, c. 96–97]: This is a matter for the chairman of the Housing Executive, who has advised me that information about the number of dwellings is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Any reported dampness is inspected by a member of the Housing Executive technical staff in order to determine the cause, which is seldom attributable to any one factor.