HOUSES FOR THE PEOPLE

Evening Star, Issue 25618, 19 October 1945, Page 6

HOUSES FOR THE PEOPLE

BRITAIN'S BUILDING PROGRAMME

SERIOUS SHORTAGE TO OVERCOME LONDON, October 17. “You have only to look at the frightful fronts stretching along tho great roads of London to see the monstrous crimes committed against aesthetics by letting loose private speculators on householding,” said tho Minister of Health, Mr Aneurin Bevan, replying iu the House of Commons debate on housing. “ The problem of housing is not a direct consequence of the war. It has not been solved for the lower income groups since the industrial revolution.

“ There are more, than 4,000,000 houses throughout the country over 80 years old,” Mr Bevan continued. “It is bitter to reflect that for many years we had millions of workers unemployed who could have built houses We made certain promises at the general election and we are going to establish a new thing in Government circles —we are going to keep them. Before the war the higher income groups had their houses and the lower income'groups did not. We propose to sta r t at the other end and. for the first time, solve the housing difficulties of the lower income group. We propose, in other words, to lay the main emphasis on the building of ‘ houses to let.’ ” : •

Mr Bevan said that the segregation of different income groups was a wholly evil thing, condemned'by anyone who paid the slightest attention to eugenics. The Government would need an additional 130,000 workers in industries producing housing materials and components. There was a very serious housing shortage which would be gravely increased by. the return of soldiers, and it was going to cause a great deal of suffering during the winter.,. Discussing the question of land, Mr Bevan declared: “We are not going to have protracted negotiations with landlords for getting land for houses. That is a form of control we are goiug to remove ”