HOUSING OF WORKERS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 78, 31 March 1908, Page 5

HOUSING OF WORKERS.

DRASTIC MEASURE. DEPARTMENT SUPREME. (By Cables—Press Association.—Copyright.) LONDON, March 30. In the House of Commons, Mr. John Burns (President of tne Local. Government Board) introduced the Housing of Workers and Town Planning Bill, which was read a first time.

The measure is a very drastic one in almost all respects, and makes the .Local Government Board supreme without reference to Parliament.

[At the International Housing Con- j gress held in London last year Mr. Burns j promised a Housing Bill for 1908, and j the measure was further announced in I the King's Speech from the Throne. At the Congress the chairman (Mr. W. I .Thompson) said that the municipalities! of Great Britain had built :-^- ---30 model lodging-houses 12,165 block dwellings, with 27,523 rooms 2507 tenement houses, -with 6068 rooms. ! 2004 cottage flats, with 5747 rooms 3830 cottages, with 17,611 rooms or a total of 20,506 dwellings, with 56,949 rooms. With regard to the town planning side of the new bill Mr. Wilson moved on May 1, "That in the opinion of this House, local authorities should be granted by legislation tlie power of laying out suburbs for building upon a rational plan, which shall include adequate air-space, convenient grounds for recreation, and facilities for locomotion, so preventing the grave evils which result from overcrowding in and around great cities." Mr. Burns said that already local authorities, with the co-oper-ation of landowners, could arrange for the improvement of urban districts on the lines advocated in the resolution, although it was unfortunate that there were sometimes opposing individuals who believed in mean streets and nasty tenements at dear rents. Power should be given to local authorities to deal with such people. He' said that he had prepared a Town Plauninj Bill, which he thought would meet with general acceptance, and he added that he cheerfully accepted the resolution.]