asked the Minister for the Environment if he will give details of the total amount of the State housing subsidy to date; the lovel of subsidy this represents on a weekly basis to local authority houses; how this compares with similar subsidies by other EC countries; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - State Housing Subsidy.
33.
Since 1977 the loan charges incurred by local authorities on borrowings for the provision of houses for letting have been met in full by State subsidy. For many years prior to that, the loan charges were funded both from State contributions and local authority rates, and figures representing the cumulative State contribution are not readily available. The total amount of subsidy paid by the State from 1977 to 1985 is £818 million.
The level of subsidy per week represented by the State's expenditure depends on the average cost of building local authority houses and the rate of interest applying to loans from the local loans fund. In 1985 the average weekly subsidy for each new local authority house was about £85; in 1986 the corresponding figure will fall to about £68, because of a reduction in the interest rate on loans.
Comparable information for other EC countries is not available in my Department.