To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the ratio of house prices to median, quartile and decile incomes of full-time adult male manual and non-manual workers in April 1979, April 1988 and April 1989; what was the effect on prices of the increase in the incomes of highly paid non-manual workers; and what action he will take to ensure that houses are no less affordable to the median manual worker than in 1979.

The available information is as follows:

Ratio of average house prices to annual earnings:1Great Britain
April	Lowest decile	Lower quartile	Median	Upper quartile	Highest decile
Manual men
1979	5·9	4·9	4·0	3·3	2·7
1988	7·5	6·0	4·7	3·8	3·0
1989	7·9	6·3	5·0	3·9	3·1
Non-manual men
1979	5·4	4·4	3·4	2·7	2·1
1988	6·2	4·6	3·4	2·6	1·9
1989	6·5	4·8	3·5	2·7	2·0
Sources: New Earnings Survey—Department of Employment. Full-time men whose pay for the survey period was not affected by absence. Weekly averages have been converted to an annual amount (× 52).
1 5 per cent. sample survey of building society mortgage completions-Department of the Environment.

House prices are determined between individual buyers and sellers. No Government have sought to dictate the price at which houses must be sold. We have no plan to do so.