HOUSING PROBLEM

Evening Post, Volume XCVIII, Issue 116, 13 November 1919, Page 8

HOUSING PROBLEM

ORGANISATION IN GREAT BRITAIN.

In a letter received by the Mayor (Mr. J. P. Luke) Mr W. H. Morton, City Engineer, makes special reference to the housing problem, and the manner in which it is being met in Great Britain. He records having met Mr. Darage, who toured New Zealand some time ago and lectured on town-planning, Mr. Darage has been appointed Housing Commissioner in London.' England, Scotland, and Wales have each been mapped out into districts, and a Housing Commissioner appointed to each district. The Commissioners are empowered to report upon and approve of all plans dealing with the housing of the people. The approval of sites and the price to be paid for the land are matters left to the Ministry of Health. The housing1 problem is one of the greatest problems now receiving the attention of the Home Government. It is estimated, writes Mr. Morton, that 500,000 houses are needed. In the provision of these the Government is making the local bodies responsible to a great extent, but has limited their liability where economical rents are' not obtainable to the equal of what wonld be derived from a. rate of Id in the £ on the rental or annual value. The Government makes up tKe balance. It, is thought that it will be seven years before conditions return to normal, and that the reduction in the value of each house at' the end of that period will be 30 per cent. While at Birmingham, Mr. Morton looked into the question of town-plan-ning. The Birmingham authorities had bought considerable undeveloped areas surrounding the city under the terms of the Town-planning Act. The main ai"terial roads from the city to the suburban districts are to be 120 ft in width, | and efforts were also being made to have a minimum width of 110 ft for all the arterial thoroughfares. They had been given special powers for the. widening of essentially business streets.