Vol. 534 No. 4
167 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he has any plans to amend the tenant purchase scheme to provide for a large discount for tenants who have very long tenancy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11030/01]
To assist local authority tenants purchase their homes a discount of 3% of the value of the house is allowed for each year of tenancy, up to a maximum of 30%. In addition to this, a further discount of £3,000 is provided. Thus, a local authority house with a market value of £100,000, would be available for purchase at £67,000 by a tenant of ten or more years' standing. By any account, this is a generous discount.
The proceeds of the sale of local authority houses to tenants are used to part fund the local authority housing programme. I consider that the terms of the present tenant purchase scheme strike a reasonable balance between the aspirations of existing tenants to own their own homes and the needs of those on the local authority waiting lists. While I have no proposals to amend the terms of the current scheme, I will continue to keep them under review.
