asked the Minister for the Environment if he will outline the restrictions recently placed on the granting of local authority house purchase loans.
Written Answers. - Local Authority House Loans.
91.
With a view to redeploying to the greatest effect the capital available for private housing, the loan and income limits attaching to local authority house purchase and reconstruction loans schemes were recently increased, as also was the subsidy attaching to low-rise mortgage loans. At the same time local authorities have been notified of adjustments to the house purchase loans scheme whereby the qualifying valuation limit for farmers is reduced from £60 to £44 and a valuation limit of £66 has been established for a farmer's son working on his father's farm and deriving his sole livelihood from that work. Authorities have also been reminded that the house purchase loan scheme should be made available to persons who, in the opinion of the authority, are unable to obtain loans from commercial lending agencies.