asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he will state the total number of dwellinghouses (a) subsidised; (b) unsubsidised, to be constructed by private persons and public utility societies, for which a building licence or other permission to obtain the necessary materials has been granted since the 1st April, 1944; and the total number of these houses since completed.
Written Answers. - Housing Subsidies.
It was not until 1st July, 1945, that it became necessary to obtain a licence for the construction of a dwellinghouse. Between that date and the 30th September, 1946, licences were issued which authorised the construction of 2,328 houses by persons other than local authorities and Government Departments. No distinction is made in the records kept in my Department between houses that are subsidised and houses that are not subsidised, or between houses constructed by public utility societies and those constructed by private persons.
A figure cannot be given for the precise number of houses completed during the period July, 1945—September, 1946. Many groups of houses for which licences were issued are still under construction, and until the period of validity of a licence expires the amount of work done under authority of a licence cannot be ascertained without special inquiry.