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Right To Buy

Volume 407: debated on Wednesday 18 June 2003

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To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many houses were sold under (a) the Right to Buy and (b) the right to acquire in each of the last five years; what his estimate is of those totals over the next three years; what plans he has to revise the guidance to tenants in respect of these schemes; and what plans he has further to amend the (a) discount and (b) clawback period in respect of these schemes. [119603]

Right to Buy

1. Sales

The following are the most recently available figures for sales under the Right to Buy scheme in England:

Number

1997–9841,329
1998–9940,272
1999–200054,251
2000–0152,380
2001–0251,968

No estimates have been made of sales over the next three years.

2. Guidance to tenants

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister booklet for tenants "Your right to buy your home" was reissued in August 2002, along with a separate booklet on the 'Rent to Mortgage' scheme. When the booklet is next reprinted, during the next few months, it will be amended to reflect the announcement in March 2003 that the maximum discount available to tenants under the Right to Buy scheme has been reduced in 41 areas under the greatest housing pressure. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister wrote on 6 March 2003 to local authorities in London and the South-East, Eastern and South-Western regions, confirming these reductions; with this letter was enclosed an extra page explaining the changes, for inclusion in copies of "Your right to buy your home" given to tenants.

3. Discounts

The Government will keep the position on maximum discounts under review.

4. Repayment of discount (clawback)

At present, if an individual resells the property which he has purchased under the Right to Buy scheme within three years from the date of purchase, he must repay discount. During the first year, all the discount must be repaid; thereafter, the amount to be repaid reduces by one-third for each complete year that elapses.

The Government's draft Housing Bill, published on 31 March 2003, proposes to extend the repayment period to five years. During the first year, all the discount will have to be repaid; thereafter, the amount to be repaid will reduce by one-fifth for each complete year that elapses.

Right to Acquire

1. Sales

The following are the most recently available figures for sales under the Right to Acquire scheme in England:

Number

1998–990
1999–20005
2000–0118
2001–0237
2002–03111

The right to acquire is a demand led scheme that enables housing association tenants to purchase their rented home at a discount. No estimates have been made of sales over the next three years.

2. Guidance to tenants

The Government have no plans to amend the guidance issued to tenants.

3. Discounts

The Government have no plans to amend the discount offered under the Right to Acquire scheme.

4. Repayment of discount

The Government intend that the measures in the draft Housing Bill designed to modernise the Right to Buy, including increasing the clawback period for repayment of discount from three to five years, will also apply to the Right to Acquire scheme.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homes were transferred from local authority ownership in (a) all English local authorities and (b) rural English local authorities under (i) the right-to-buy scheme and (ii) registered social landlords in each year since 1996. [117990]

The figures available are tabled.

Homes transferred from local authority ownerships
Right to buy scheme salesTransfers to registered social landlords
EnglandOf which rural LasEnglandOf which rural Las
1996–9733,206122,5341
1997–9841,329135,7011
1998–9940,2727,21276,54326,425
1999–200054,2519,55696,75515,526
2000–0152,3808,137132,46228,730
2001–0251,9687,74435,68717,370
1 Not available