WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1985
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MORE TO BE SPENT ON HOUSING
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IN 1985-86, $3.9 BILLION WOULD BE SPENT ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF HOUSING, INCLUDING TEMPORARY HOUSING AREAS, THE FINANCIAL SECRETARY SAID.
THIS COMPARED WITH THE REVISED ESTIMATE OF $3.5 BILLION FOR 1984-85, SIR JOHN BREMRIDGE POINTED OUT.
THESE FIGURES FOR THE CONSOLIDATED ACCOUNT CAPITAL EXPENDITURE EXCLUDED THE VALUE OF LAND USED BY THE HOUSING AUTHORITY FOR RENTAL HOUSING AND FOR FLATS BUILT UNDER THE HOME OWNERSHIP SCHEME SOLD AFTER EARLY 1982, SIR JOHN SAID.
THE 1985-86 DRAFT ESTIMATES FOR THE RENTAL HOUSING PROGRAMME ARE $2 822 MILLION, FOR THE HOME OWNERSHIP SCHEME $3 809 MILLION AND FOR TEMPORARY HOUSING AREAS $3 906 MILLION.
+THE GOVERNMENT'S POLICY IS THAT THE PUBLIC HOUSING PROGRAMME SHOULD ACHIEVE A LEVEL OF PRODUCTION OF OVER 40 000 FLATS A YEAR FOR RENTAL AND SALE,+ SIR JOHN SAID.
HE EXPLAINED THAT THIS WOULD COMPRISE THE FLATS FOR RENTAL BY THE HOUSING AUTHORITY, FLATS FOR SALE UNDER THE HOME OWNERSHIP SCHEME. AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR PARTICIPATION SCHEME, AND THE HOUSING SOCIETY'S PRODUCTION THROUGH THE DEVELOPMENT OF RENTAL HOUSING AND THE URBAN IMPROVEMENT SCHEME.
+ IN THE NEXT FOUR YEARS WE SHALL BE PROVIDING NEW, GOOD QUALITY SUBSIDISED HOUSING FOR OVER 712 000 PEOPLE,+ SAID SIR JOHN.
THIS IS BASED ON THE PRODUCTION ESTIMATE FOR THE NEXT FOUR YEARS, INCLUDING PRIVATE SECTOR PARTICIPATION SCHEME FLATS AND HOUSING SOCIETY FLATS AT A TOTAL OF 178 000, WITH AN AVERAGE COMPLETION RATE OF 44 000 FLATS A YEAR.
+THIS WILL HAVE A MAJOR IMPACT ON MANY NOW WAITING PATIENTLY FOR DECENT HOUSING, SIR JOHN ADDED.
THE FORECAST OF HOUSING AUTHORITY PRODUCTION IN THE FOUR YEARS 1985-86 TO 1988-89 EXCEEDS PRODUCTION IN THE PREVIOUS FOUR YEARS BY 2.8 PER CENT, HE NOTED.
AS REGARDS THE HOME OWNERSHIP SCHEME, SIR JOHN SAID THAT 49 810 FLATS OUT OF A TOTAL OF ABOUT 56 190 FLATS IN THE FIRST SIX PHASES WOULD HAVE BEEN COMPLETED BY THE END OF 1985-86.
HE ADDED THAT WORK WAS IN HAND ON THE BALANCE AND ON A FURTHER 20 830 FLATS IN PHASES SEVEN, EIGHT AND NINE.
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