STATE HOUSES

Grey River Argus, 18 January 1940, Page 9

STATE HOUSES

5700 Completed MINISTER'S REVIEW. WELLINGTON, January 16. The progress made with the conof dwellings under the State Housing Scheme was brief 1 y reviewed by the Minister for Housing (the Hon. H. T. Armstrong) in an interview this evening. The Ministry of Housing was established in September, 1936, and the building of houses was commenced early in the following year. Statistics were quoted by the Minister to show that 5705 houses have been completed since the inception of the scheme.

The following was the position on December 29, 1939: — ■ Houses under construction 2,45 b: Houses completed 5705; Houses under construction, and actually completed 8,155; Houses advertised foe contracts 10,057; Houses completed and handed over during 1939; Men employed by the Housing Construction Department and the contractors 5,162; Towns in which work is proceeding 113. Mr Armstrong said that he had hoped that by this time it would have been possible to show better results than those achieved, but the war had given a serious set-back to the scheme. Labour and material which would otherwise have been available had been taken for the building of hutments and other buildings in military camps. However, he thought that under the circumstances it could be claimed that good progress had been made with the scheme.