86

THE  HOUSING  QUESTION

The  following  quotations  shew  what  the  Government
have  said  about  these  questions.  We  will  see  directly
what  they  have  done  :
From  the  official  journal  of  the  Ministry  of  Health
Housing,  dated  16th  August,  1919.
"  Conversion  of  Houses  into  Flats.
"  The  Ministry  are  prepared  to  sanction  loans  to  Local  Authorities ­
  to  enable  them  to  carry  out  schemes  of  conversion,  and  if  it
is  found  impracticable  to  render  the  Scheme  self-supporting,  the
scheme  will  rank  for  financial  assistance  from  the  Government  as
part  of  the  Housing  Scheme  of  the  Local  Authority.”
Extract  from  a  reply  by  the  Minister  of  Health  in  the
House  of  Commons,  3rd  August,  1921.
"  Where  houses  are  being  kept  empty  by  owners  for  advantageous ­
  sale  in  the  future.  Local  Authorities  have  power  to  purchase
compulsorily,  and  I  have  urged  thousands  of  Authorities  all  over
the  country  to  acquire  these  properties  wherever  they  can.”
On  13th  March,  1922,  Mr.  J.  Jones,  M.P.,  asked  the
Minister  the  following  question  as  to  empty  houses  :—
“  Is  the  Right  Hon.  Gentleman  aware  of  the  fact  that  we  have
a  number  of  empty  houses  in  various  parts  of  London,  and  the
only  way  we  can  get  occupancy  is  by  buying  them,  and  the  great
mass  of  people  cannot  afford  to  buy  them  ?  ”
Sir  Alfred  Mond,  in  his  reply,  stated  that  Local
Authorities  have  power  to  purchase  these  houses.
Similarly,  when  the  House  of  Commons  was,  so
lately  as  May  nth,  1921,  considering  the  clause  of  a
Bill  to  authorise  Local  Authorities  compulsorily  to
rent  houses,  which  were  deliberately  being  kept  empty