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Mr. Hardy
asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many houses are currently under construction; and how this number compares with the position in May 1979.
Mr. Tracey
[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1987]: The latest estimates are that there were 223,300 private and 43,200 public sector dwellings under construction in England at the end of March this year; at the end of March 1979, there were, respectively, 176,800 and 161,000.In the private sector, the rise of 46,500 has taken the number under construction to the highest level since 1973, and reflects people's ambitions to become owner-occupiers. There are now 2ยท3 million more owner-occupied dwellings in England than there were eight years ago.