asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the latest figure for the number of dwellings classed as unfit; and if he will give a breakdown for both public and private sectors.

The Department's latest estimates appear in table 13 of the "English House Condition Survey 1981: Part 1", a copy of which is in the Library. Results of the 1986 survey are not yet available. The totals of numbers of unfit dwellings reported in local authorities' annual HIP returns have not been consistent with estimates from the house condition surveys.