‘Better Homes for People in Wales’ was endorsed by the Assembly in July. That set out our national housing strategy for Wales. We want everyone in Wales to have the opportunity of living in good quality, affordable housing. We want people to be able to choose where they live and decide whether buying or renting is best for them and their families. We would all agree that it is an ambitious provision that presents the housing sector in Wales with an enormous challenge. However, to be less ambitious would imply that we should be content with second best for the people of Wales. I know that none of us here are content with second best. The national housing strategy aims to ensure that all households in Wales are given the opportunity to live in homes that meet the Welsh housing quality standard. That means homes that are in a good state of repair, which are safe and secure. Quality is the underlying theme that underpins all our priorities. The strategy sets clear goals and targets, enabling us to measure achievements against our vision. It is essential that we have a target standard that defines what we mean by good quality homes. That is what the Welsh housing quality standard is.

We all know that people’s homes and their environment are critical to the quality of their lives. Poor quality housing has a profound and negative impact on people’s physical health, their safety and mental wellbeing. There is much to be done in our social housing and private housing sectors to eliminate poor housing. However, the social housing sector is where we begin to exert the most influence. This sector represents 20 per cent of the total housing stock in Wales, which is nearly 250,000 homes. Registered social landlords have been regulated for several years—formerly by Tai Cymru/Housing for Wales, and latterly by the National Assembly. That regulation has been supported by published quality standards such as development quality requirements. These have set high standards of design, energy efficiency, security and safety inside and outside the home, which is also important. Registered social landlords have been given a target of 2010 for all their existing stock to meet these requirements.

The overall standard of registered social landlord managed housing in Wales has begun to improve significantly. This improved standard should be available to all tenants of social housing. The Welsh housing quality standard includes many of the quality standards that registered social landlords are already achieving. Among them are, that homes must be in a good state of repair, safe and secure, adequately heated, fuel efficient and well insulated. They must contain up-to-date kitchens and bathrooms, be well managed and, as far as possible, they should suit the specific requirements of the household, for example, adaptations for specific disabilities. Further details of the standards, guidance on implementing the National Assembly for Wales’s policy requirements, and sources of good practice will be published in the next few weeks. We are committed to implementing this standard and bringing all existing social housing up to the Welsh housing quality standard by 2012. Landlords will be required to assess the implications of bringing their stock up to the standard by 2012 and to present their initial assessment on the condition of their stock and the financial implications by July 2002. Local authority landlords should have gathered sufficient detailed knowledge of the condition of their stock by 2006. That will enable them to develop the necessary strategies for tackling the backlog of repairs and for planning future improvements.

The Assembly Government expects the initial assessment and subsequent action plan to be incorporated into the landlord’s business plan and that includes local authorities from 2003 onwards. This will also be more consistent with the move to the more general asset management plans that local authorities are currently adopting and that we are assisting them to develop. It will also help them to meet other corporate objectives such as tackling fuel poverty and reducing energy consumption. Good information on stock condition is fundamental to the assessment process. As a Government, we have already issued guidance for local authorities on how to undertake stock condition surveys and we are providing financial support over the next three years to help them gather this information. To date, 12 local authorities are benefiting from grants totalling £585,000, and further grants will still be available over the next three years.

The Welsh housing quality standard and our housing strategy are not the end of the process. This is a dynamic set of policies that we will continue to develop and refine to reflect the changing needs and circumstances. As a Government, we are well aware of all the challenges that we face in the housing arena. The Welsh housing quality standard is the first step in the process of that decision making. I will deal with the amendments in my reply.

In order to realise the vision of providing quality standard housing for all the people of Wales, we must look forward. We must appreciate and understand the changing patterns of tenure and ownership, housing design and technologies that will ensure energy efficiency, and meet the needs and aspirations of the people who make these properties their homes.

The framework for the Welsh housing quality standard identifies specific requirements for state of repair, fuel efficiency, safety, security, location, design and suitability for every home in our country. The Conservative group supports the need to accomplish the provision of quality standard housing for all the people of Wales.

However, these proposals to meet future housing standards are directed back to the last century. They are not sufficiently targeted on the future needs of those who live in these houses. Recognition of the national housing strategy is highlighted and underlined in the introduction to the document that we are considering today. That strategy has a commitment to bring all existing housing, whether social or local authority-owned, up to the Welsh housing quality standard within 10 years.

We need to initiate proposals that would allow every home in Wales to be brought up to the Welsh housing quality standard. At the end of 2000, 15 per cent of the total housing dwelling stock in Wales was rented from local authorities. If the current trend were to continue unaltered, by 2010—the year by which the Assembly has committed itself to delivering higher standard homes—the total dwelling stock, which is rented from local authorities, will have declined to just over 10 per cent. However, this percentage could, potentially, be significantly lower by 2010. In May last year, the Assembly considered the options for housing stock transfer. In the supporting report, it was clearly indicated that:

‘[Stock transfer]…is the only option currently available which would be capable of delivering additional investment in local authority housing on the scale necessary to fully overcome the identified backlog of repair and modernisation.’

If our local authorities take up the only option that is available, by 2010 we may find that our housing stock has declined to well below 10 per cent of homes in Wales.

If we seek a sustainable, inclusive and equal Wales, we must meet the needs of the overwhelming majority of the people of Wales, who indicate time and again their aspirations of owning their own homes. If local authorities are to have a diminishing role in the provision of housing, we must consider other organisations that can more effectively implement the proposals that we make today. These organisations would be at the forefront of designing homes to meet people’s requirements and would have experience of adapting homes to meet individual and specific needs.

The standards that we consider today identify numerous specifications on the age of appliances, safety features, inspections and adequate space, most of which are covered by the current health and safety law or by building regulations. They are design features that must be taken into account by independent homebuilders, who must meet their customers’ requirements in order to sell their properties.

It has long been claimed that the right to buy scheme has left local authorities with undesirable homes. If this were true, why were the right to buy sales in 2000 higher than in any year since 1991? There are also indications that they will continue at this high level. Is this a sign that local authorities are being left with undesirable properties or a realisation by tenants that local authorities can no longer adequately meet the housing needs of the people of Wales?

Another false claim concerns the availability of funding for house stock repairs. Successive governments have made such funds available, but local authorities have chosen not to spend that money on effective repair programmes. We all recall that, for many councils years ago, the housing revenue account successfully subsidised the general rate fund.

There is an underlying assumption in the Welsh housing quality standard document and ‘Better Homes for People in Wales’, that local authorities are best placed to determine and identify local housing needs. The Conservative group believes that the independent sector is also geared towards identifying and meeting the needs of its communities. It will consider local amenities, transport networks and employment opportunities in the same way. It would invest in the construction and renovation required for the improvement of local housing. It has flexibility in resources and development, together with the management expertise, to ensure that projects are executed efficiently and within budget limits.

In addition to focusing on local authorities, this document does not fully reflect many of the specific needs of people who reside in rural areas. Many properties in rural areas make up the 35 per cent of Welsh homes built before 1919 and which therefore require individual proposals to ensure their refurbishment.

We need to look beyond our local authorities and find ways of joining together the experience of the independent sector and voluntary organisations if we are to achieve the targets outlined in this document.

I propose amendment 2. Add a new point at the end of the motion:

I propose amendment 3. Add a new point at the end of the motion:

I propose amendment 4. Add a new point at the end of the motion:

I propose amendment 5. Add a new point at the end of the motion:

I will speak in particular to amendments 2 and 5.

The motion refers to the significant contribution of the Welsh housing quality standard to the vision of a ‘sustainable, inclusive and equal Wales’. Despite the odd grammar, Plaid Cymru supports a vision of sustainability, inclusivity and equality within Wales.

The question we must ask is whether this standard makes a significant contribution to that vision. The meat of the document is relevant—it refers to the actual requirements of good housing. Who would quarrel with the seven principles outlined on page 2 and expanded on in later pages? It could, of course, be said that these are obvious and should already be in place. However, we know that they are not. Therefore, it is important to consider ways in which the Government of Wales can ensure that a steadily increasing proportion of homes meets this standard and, if possible, reach 100 per cent well before 2012.

Everybody has a right to a decent home. It reduces physical and mental illness and trauma, and increases contentment. It reduces the cost to the national health service. Well-built homes in the right place reduce heating and transport costs. They help people develop and benefit from education.

Taking part in decisions that affect your community gives you a sense of belonging. However, that feeling can be easily destroyed when local views are ignored or communities are duped into supporting fancy-sounding schemes.

However, my problem with this document is that towards the end, the detailed assessment process only refers to local authority housing. The earlier part refers to all housing, regardless of tenure, or whether it is existing or new housing. Surely, particularly in light of Government incentives to move housing out of local government control, this process must apply to other social housing. It must also apply to privately rented housing. While the National Assembly does not have the same control over privately rented housing, there are means of encouraging better quality. Many of the actions that could be taken remain within the remit of the UK Government. Will it subscribe to this motion’s vision?

Therefore, we must support a licensing system and the payment of housing benefit only when the quality is acceptable. We must get an agreement on the transfer of responsibility for building regulations to the Assembly. Or is that agenda too nationalist for this Government? It must be made crystal clear in this debate that we expect private landlords to accept and work towards these standards.

Without enough money, none of this can be achieved. I know that changes to the public sector borrowing requirement, to conform to rules prevailing in other European Union countries, are crucial in housing. That point has been made many times. Nevertheless, the fact remains that the UK is out of line in restricting public investment, which is considered to be just that under more rational regimes.

When the Assembly was established in 1999, we had powers to exempt local authority companies from those controls on borrowing. However, just as the then First Secretary, Alun Michael, was about to implement that for local authority housing companies, the Treasury changed the statement of funding policy so that such borrowing would count against our budget, effectively stopping the First Secretary dead in his tracks.

When the prudential borrowing system replaces the 1989 Act, this oddity will, I understand, disappear, but perhaps it will be too late for local authority housing. There is therefore a case to revisit the issue now, when it is important for the future of local authority housing. We must remember that Manchester Airport has been exempted, so why not housing in Wales? I fear that, sadly, shades of Thatcherism still lie heavily on New Labour Governments and it is surely time to lift them.

One of the most important factors in preserving and improving housing stock must be the provision of central heating. I welcome the priority given in the document and in ‘Better Homes for the people in Wales’, to adequate heating and fuel efficient and well-insulated housing. The UK Labour Government’s commitment to prioritising heating provision is also evident in its continuing the payment of the winter fuel allowance, which has been warmly received—pardon the pun—and increased year-on-year. The social and health benefits to people, especially the elderly, of a warm home are well documented. As part of this strategy, the home energy efficiency scheme has been well used and has benefited many households in Wales. Its second stage is due to end in June 2002. However, the current scheme has several anomalies that must be addressed in future guidelines.

Two families in my constituency have fallen foul of an arbitrary rule, namely that if a household has three forms of heating it is not eligible for a central heating grant, regardless of the claimants’ personal circumstances or the condition of the existing equipment. One family is elderly, with the husband receiving disability living allowance. The other family has a several months’ old baby. Both families’ circumstances are totally different, yet their heating problems are the same. Both have three forms of heating—two gas fires and one radiator. All their appliances are old, and both families were told that the appliances are near irreparable if they break down. However, in both cases, the home energy efficiency scheme surveyor must ignore the age and condition of the appliances. If they are in situ and working when a visit is made, they count toward the assessment and disqualify the householder from help. In both cases, the likely scenario is that, within a few months, at least one appliance will be declared irreparable. Another application will have to be made, necessitating further paperwork and another survey as well as, presumably, causing severe distress and inconvenience to families without adequate heating. The time that heating appliances are used most is in mid-winter. During the summer, the equipment will not have been used much.

It seems cost-effective and fairer to allow the HEES surveyor to exercise discretion. He or she is an independent, competent professional, and should be allowed to decide to install heating where it is obvious that the existing system will not be adequate to last, say, the next three months. That would be a fairer system. Both families in those cases had difficulty accepting what appears to be an inflexible and arbitrary attitude.

My second point concerns the situation regarding people’s statutory rights as consumers. In my constituency, a heating system was installed in one home only for the family to discover that the boiler was faulty. The occupier in question had a partner who had recently been discharged from hospital following a major operation. That family was without hot water for two weeks. Their situation was worse than when they had applied for the grant. Under normal circumstances, a person buying a new boiler would have the legal right to reject faulty goods and ask for a replacement or a refund. However, in these circumstances, the family had no such right. The heating company was contracted to HEES, which, in turn, advised the client to deal with the fault herself. This situation could quickly become a stalemate. During protracted negotiations, things go from bad to worse. It is vital that the legal situation is clarified to contractors.

Having said that, I remain hopeful that, if these problems are ironed out—and ironed out they must be—the HEES scheme presents an excellent opportunity to achieve the aims set out in the Wales quality housing standard. The scheme has met with much success and few problems in my constituency. However, those problems are specific problems. We can address them and ensure that we do not keep encountering them. I ask for these matters to be seriously considered and that the problems that I have highlighted be addressed.

We would all like to see the standards outlined in this document achieved for housing in Wales. However, what is missing is ‘how’. How are we going to achieve this standard? One way would be to develop a licensing scheme, as has been said, for rented accommodation.

First, Plaid Cymru emphasises—it has done so for many years, as the Minister is aware—that you need to know from where you are starting. At present, it is impossible to produce a national picture of the condition of housing in Wales, because the information is not available. We can guess, but we do not know the current state and condition of housing.

The assessment of conditions and needs is complex and costly, and grants have been made available to local authorities to carry out such surveys. As the Minister has said, 12 authorities have taken up the grants. The date set for completing the surveys is 2006. Plaid Cymru supports that bottom-up approach of each council carrying out its own survey, but we stress the need for a national framework to ensure consistency of information. The Assembly should ensure that all councils carry out the survey and that the data gathered is consistent and comparable, and thus capable of producing a national picture. That is the basis of our amendment 3.

As previously stated, quality housing need not apply only to properties owned by local authorities. Assessments of all housing stock are needed. How will the Minister tackle the problem that exists in the privately owned stock, both rented and owner-occupied? The private sector poses a great challenge, and one way of tackling that would be by developing a licensing scheme, perhaps based on the outlines contained in this document. A national licensing scheme can be developed for the private rented sector. Only a nationally enforceable licensing scheme will improve conditions in the rented sector.

Currently, much is left to local authorities to develop their own schemes, and many are making good progress, which should be acknowledged and supported. However, would it not be better to develop a national scheme for the entire rented sector, and not only for houses in multiple occupation?

Many north Wales coastal towns are prime examples of places where a licensing scheme is needed to provide a basic standard of warm, safe accommodation. Will the Assembly Labour Government support the development of such a scheme, unlike its Westminster colleagues? While there is little with which to disagree in this document, several questions remain unanswered as to how the scheme can be implemented and monitored without a national base survey and licensing scheme. Without those, these fine words may remain just that, like with many Government documents.

I am pleased to welcome the national housing strategy—sorry, it is not the national housing strategy. However, this gives me an opportunity to pay tribute to the professional people in the office of the Record of Proceedings, who correct everything that others and I occasionally say incorrectly. I have wanted to say that for a long time. I am pleased to welcome the Welsh housing quality standard document that the Minister has presented to us today. It is an important link to the housing strategy, ‘Better Homes for People in Wales’, which sets out the vision to which we should all subscribe.

Sometimes, I find it difficult to sit and listen to people such as William Graham. Each time I hear the Conservatives speak on housing, I feel the need to call for the sick bucket. They are the reason that we have these problems today. That is the irony of it, as they well know. However, we must put up with it and, as usual, allow them to indulge themselves.

I will talk briefly about local authority houses in particular. It is important for us to remember that, for many people living on local authority estates, these standards are only dreams. I know that from tenants in my constituency, as will many of you. It is important that we give them the opportunity to enjoy such standards. These are the types of things that we must strive to achieve. It is about making homes for people out of houses.

I am delighted to read some of the items in the document. The section on security refers to Secured by Design, a revolutionary scheme that we should welcome in co-operation with the police. I also welcome the adaptations for the disabled. Members of the Local Government and Housing Committee know how often we receive representations from wonderful and valued organisations such as the Royal National Institute for the Blind and the Royal National Institute for Deaf People. Their lobbies must be taken into account, which is why I welcome the Minister’s strategy.

I also welcome the opportunity to provide mains-powered smoke detectors in all properties. Some local authorities have already provided them, but many more are needed. It is vitally important in protecting lives. Providing adequate heating is also mentioned in the document, as is a release from fuel poverty. If you live in a constituency where tenants live 1,400 feet above sea level, fuel poverty is an important issue. Places like Ebbw Vale or Brynmawr, in my constituency, are four or five degrees colder than here in Cardiff. It is important, as so many people suffer from fuel poverty.

We will only achieve all that by working closely with our local authorities. I pay tribute to their work. It is not their fault that we are in this state today. They have not had adequate resources to enable them to maintain these properties for such a long time. That is why it is important that we face this up-front and tackle it head-on. By working with the Welsh Local Government Association and those local authorities we will be able to improve standards for all our tenants. It is important that the stock condition surveys that we are funding will help with the regeneration plans that we expect from local authorities. I am sure that they will all be put in place. We should not damn the local authorities with feigned praise, Janet. They will conform, and they will support this, because they know what it means to the people in their communities. Although only 12 authorities have announced their intentions at present, I am confident that the others will be on board with the Minister’s encouragement. Who knows the local area and the housing stock better than the local authorities? We are always trying to second-guess the people out there. However, I do not believe in a centralist approach. As has been said many times in the Committee, we want to devolve power to those communities so that they may decide the best way forward. In working in partnership with the Minister on this document we have the opportunity to achieve that.

Our Minister will skilfully negotiate for appropriate allocations because it will take an increase in resources. I would be unrealistic if I did not say that. The Minister has made strong representations, as did her predecessor and others—including the First Secretary at the time—to the Treasury about changing the borrowing rate rule. Unfortunately, we did not succeed with that. That does not mean that she is not trying hard or that she is not totally committed. I compliment her on the work that she is doing. It is one thing to be in opposition and say, as Plaid does, that you could do it better. However, if we were to follow the Plaid scenario in a nationalist agenda, with independence there would be no stability, no security and no opportunity for the people of Wales. You could not raise the resources that we spend now. That is the reality of life. We must all work in partnership, because we are talking about people’s futures—

If we are to give people the quality of life that they want from warm, modern, secure homes, this standard should be embraced by all of us in all parties.

Datganaf fuddiant fel meddyg teulu a chynghorydd ar Gyngor Dinas a Sir Abertawe. Mae tŷ o ansawdd derbyniol yn hawl sylfaenol, fel y clywsom lawer tro. Dyna bwysigrwydd dogfen o’r fath. Mae’n bwysig ein bod yn gweithredu ar ei geiriau clodwiw, fel y nododd Janet Ryder eisoes. Mae cysylltiad anochel rhwng tai gwael ac ystadegau iechyd gwael, sydd wedi’i nodi lawer tro.

I have two brief points. In paragraph 6 on page 6 of the document, it states that homes should be located in an estate layout. There are places where this is ideal. There are also places, particularly with existing housing, where insistence on this approach would not contribute to sustainability or community contentment. That is the rationale behind our amendment 4.

Secondly, on licensing, as has been said already, the development of a licensing scheme is the responsibility of each local authority should it choose to do so. Even when authorities follow this path and develop schemes, they are voluntary. Given the poor quality of some private, rented accommodation—not only multiple occupation houses, but other private, rented accommodation—it is now time to move to a licensing scheme that is set at a national level, that has teeth and is enforceable. That would do more than anything else to raise the standard of housing, particularly throughout the rented sector.

I welcome this document and much of what has been said on standards for homes for people in Wales. I am pleased that there is reference to the need for mains-powered smoke detectors in all properties and on each floor. That is important. We have won the battle on smoke alarms because I think that most people now understand the need for them, in particular for hardwired or mains-powered smoke alarms rather than battery-powered ones.

I will move the debate on to discuss residential sprinkler systems. We should, perhaps, be focusing on these systems and making them our clarion call in terms of fire safety and safety in our homes. I highlight the work carried out by the fire services across Wales, but in particular by the north Wales fire service, which has embarked on a residential sprinkler system project following on from the work that was undertaken by the Local Government and Housing Commttee and the recent publication of the ‘Wired for Safety’ report. The presentation on residential sprinkler systems that was held in the Assembly last year has, I hope, allayed people’s fears that they would be presented with a New York-style system in which a whole house is automatically flooded when somebody burns toast. That is not the reality of a sprinkler system, as people will know. In fact, such systems use less water than is used by the fire service, but as a previous employee of the fire service, I do not advocate that people should not call it because of the amount of water that it would spray around. Far be it from me to say that that would be the case.

It is important that we consider moving away from battery-powered smoke alarms to mains-powered smoke alarms and residential sprinkler systems, which I believe to be the natural progression in terms of fire safety in our homes across Wales. I would like assurance from the Minister that these proposals will be carried forward in conjunction with partners such as the fire service and others.

One of my tasks as an Assembly Deputy Minister is Chairing the steering group on devising a strategy for older people in Wales. There is no doubt that the housing issue is a big one that must be addressed by that strategy. I will make three brief points relating to that view. First, the right to a warm, dry house is important. Karen Sinclair highlighted the importance of the home energy efficiency scheme and winter fuel allowance. It is also important to underline the key issue of insulation standards in our houses to keep people warm, particularly older people. It is a great scandal in the UK that the temperature must only drop by one or two degrees in winter before there are hundreds of excess deaths every year, not only from hypothermia but from many other illnesses to which people are more prone in bad weather. That is in marked distinction to other European countries with colder and more hostile climates. As their housing is better adjusted to such climates, there is not the same variation in mortality, particularly in older people, as that of the UK. The standards outlined in this document, particularly in terms of insulation, are welcome and will make a contribution towards preventing those excess deaths.

Another issue for older people is that of personal security. The security standards in older people’s homes are important to them in terms of being able to use peep-holes to see who is at the door and having chain locks to prevent unwelcome intruders. The recognition of the locality of a house, where young people cannot congregate and become an anti-social nuisance thereby undermining the quality of life of so many people, is also important. Older people are disproportionately affected by this type of anti-social activity.

I would like to see more emphasis on the ability of modern housing to adapt to changing needs, namely a focus on lifelong design for houses. There is a general recognition of the importance of lifelong design for houses, but this document could have brought that need out a little more. The Minister could perhaps consider that in her response—possibly a little more emphasis on that, so that people, when they move into a house, have the flexibility in design, for example, to allow stair lifts and so forth to be installed as their needs change.

I welcome this initiative to substantially improve housing in Wales. As we all know, it is important right across the board—for health, education, and the general quality of life. As we also know, there is much to be done in Wales to improve the quality of housing.

I welcome the commitment to sustainability, inclusivity, and equality—all of these are basic rights that are cross-cutting in terms of the Assembly’s responsibilities. I join others in urging Edwina to continue to press the case at every available opportunity for the Treasury to relax the rules with regard to local authorities borrowing against their housing stock. This is a big issue, which is brought to my attention again and again by my local authority. Edwina has been pressing for this, and I urge her to continue to do so.

I will mention three specific constituency issues. First, the redevelopment of prefabs in my constituency. Edwina is aware that good quality bungalows are being provided in place of prefabs. However, there is one big issue that people are unhappy about, and I have received hundreds of letters on this. It is the question of fair treatment for tenants, compared with owners, in terms of home-loss compensation. At the moment, there is a maximum threshold of £1,500 for tenants, whereas owner-occupiers can get 10 per cent of the market value of their property. In many cases, therefore, there is a huge disparity, although the inconvenience and the general difficulty involved is the same, be it a tenant or an owner. The thresholds have not changed since 1991. The Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions is currently proposing reform for England. I would like us in Wales, prior to new primary legislation that would equalise the position between tenants and owners, to consult with a view to raising compensation levels as soon as possible by Assembly secondary legislation. Time is of the essence on this point. The prefab residents who are waiting for new bungalows in Newport East want to see these changes made, and made as quickly as possible. I would therefore like to know what the Assembly Government position is on that.

On the Alway council estate in my constituency, there is a regeneration project—

I was under the impression, following the ruling by the Presiding Officer earlier this afternoon, that Deputy Ministers were included in the Assembly Government. I am rather bemused, therefore, that you are asking for the views of the Assembly Government on this issue. You are part of the Assembly Government and should be in a position to offer those views rather than seeking them from, I presume, the Assembly Cabinet, which is a different body to the Assembly Government, according to the ruling that we had earlier this afternoon.

You should know from the general guidelines, Rhodri, that it is clearly set out that on some occasions Deputy Ministers speak as Deputy Ministers when they state that that is the case. On other occasions, and obviously with respect to constituency issues, it is otherwise.

A substantial scheme is ongoing on the Alway council estate whereby the local authority is working with the Assembly to improve not only the quality of housing, but of the whole environment, and build community capacity. It is an impressive scheme. I highlight it in terms of the important points that the tenants have raised—they see that there must be improvements to the housing quality if the whole scheme is to be sustainable and hang together. Improving the quality of housing is vital, and we must always keep that at the forefront of our minds. I am pleased that this debate enables us to do that.

My final point involves a third local issue which, like the others, is generally applicable across Wales. It relates to the part of the scheme that refers to attractive and safe environments. One significant issue that has been brought to my attention is abandoned cars. If we can deal effectively with that issue, it will lead to cleaner streets and safer communities. It will also reduce the temptation of crime, fear of crime and crime itself, as well as boosting pride in neighbourhoods. A consultation scheme on reducing red tape to allow local authorities to deal with this problem quicker is ongoing in England. This is not directly relevant to housing, but it is relevant to part of the programme that refers to attractive and safe environments. Could a consultation scheme on this issue be taken forward as quickly as possible in Wales?

I declare an interest as a councillor in Swansea City and County Council.

Are you a Minister? [Laughter.]

The condition of the Welsh housing stock has been a major concern since the National Assembly was established, and prior to that. It is a credit to the National Assembly Government that it has taken the issue seriously and has started to introduce measures to put it right. A range of measures have been introduced. We have increased the amount of capital resources available to local councils for housing by £41 million over the next three years. That is the first such increase since the early 1990s. We have also produced a comprehensive housing strategy, which has been referred to several times during the debate. It is aimed at raising the quality of the housing stock in Wales. The much-improved Welsh home energy efficiency scheme has also been mentioned, as has stock transfer. We are developing a distinctive community mutual model of housing stock transfer to enable us to attract sufficient resources to improve the council housing stock while empowering tenants.

The Welsh housing quality standard fits into that pattern of measures to drive up the standard of public sector homes in Wales. The assessment of the condition of the public sector housing stock, which forms part of it, and the introduction of local housing strategies are essential management tools to guide investment decisions and to enable well-informed decisions by landlords and tenants on their futures. We have already issued guidance on this, and we are helping local councils to fund the necessary surveys. Janet Ryder referred to a need for a national survey. Plaid Cymru must make up its mind. Does it believe in local democracy and local services, or does it want to enforce a national standard throughout Wales? It cannot have it both ways.

Did you understand that what Janet Ryder said was that we are happy with local surveys but that they should adhere to national guidelines and consistent standards? That is different to calling for a national survey.

That was not what I heard Janet Ryder say. However, if you say that that is what she said, I accept it. There are standards for these surveys but, in the past, Plaid Cymru has promoted a national survey. That is inconsistent with its call for local democracy.

It is important that this standard forms part of an overarching strategy. Our vision for housing in the Welsh housing strategy stresses our commitment to good quality, affordable housing, to choice and to a mixed housing sector. The need to establish a licensing scheme for privately rented accommodation and the new fitness standard that may go hand in hand with that is crucial. If we also want to promote choice, it would help if local councils could borrow on the same terms as registered social landlords. That requires changes to the public sector borrowing requirement.

Both of those issues require action at a UK Government level. Ministers in the UK Government are in no doubt as to where the National Assembly stands on these matters and what we want and need for Wales. There are also changes in hand to the grant regime to help owner-occupiers. Despite the implication in Jonathan Morgan’s amendment, the Assembly has not forgotten the private sector.

We have discussed issues such as the reform of the public sector borrowing requirement ad nauseam in the Assembly, and I see little point in repeating ourselves. Everyone is clear on where we stand, and delivery must now be the key issue. We are restricted by the resources available to us and our powers, but we are not here as a debating society, as the Plaid amendment implies, but to improve the quality of people’s lives. We are doing that slowly but surely, and this measure is one more step in that direction.

The phraseology of William Graham’s amendment is obscure, but I believe that it contains a clear reference to Conservative housing policies in the 1980s and 1990s, when the only game in town was owner occupation and the social housing sector was left to rot. Of course, housing is so important now, particularly to the Conservatives, yet it did not even feature in their 2001 general election manifesto. However, it was under a Conservative Government that the decline in investment in public sector housing began. Councils’ freedom to invest in their housing stock was curtailed and registered social landlords were sent to the money markets to raise cash for new homes.

I thank the Deputy Minister, the Member for Swansea, or whoever he is at the moment, for giving way. It has been statistically proven time after time that the majority of people seek to buy their own houses. The last Conservative Government enabled vast numbers of people to buy their own houses. That would have been denied to them had any other political party been running this country.

As a result of that policy, rural housing suffered particularly badly because of a shortage of homes, investment in council and public sector housing decreased considerably, and there was a record number of repossessions. We must take that into account.

The fact is that we cannot afford to be ideological about housing tenure, investment or standards. That applies to those who think that they know what is best for their tenants, as well as those who ask them to hand over social housing to the private sector. Good quality housing is key to so many of our policies on social inclusion, good health, sustainability and economic development. I am happy to support this motion as another practical advance towards that goal.

First, I will deal with the amendments. Amendment 1, in the name of Jonathan Morgan, is already catered for through the current building regulations, which set the standards for new private sector homes and also local authorities who reflect demographics in their strategic assessments. In relation to Janet Davies’s point, you cannot steal my clothes on this issue—it is I who wanted building regulations before any opposition party suggested it. I keenly want that matter devolved to me in the National Assembly.

Amendment 2, in the name of Jocelyn Davies, does not account for the fact that the standard already applies to registered social landlords who are well on their way to achieving it. As far as private landlords are concerned, we do not have the necessary powers to require them to achieve this standard. However, I am currently consulting on licensing. Dai Lloyd and Janet Ryder are behind the game on this. I am consulting on what could be introduced and included so that the achievement of the standard could be a condition of granting a licence. All these issues are in hand.

Amendment 3 concerns technical issues which are already addressed in the standard and guidance issued to local authorities on stock condition surveys in 2001.

Regarding amendment 4, in the name of Jocelyn Davies, there are again several technical issues addressed in guidance documents that we have already issued. In addition, we are currently working on further detail and guidance on the application of the standard in relation to this issue.

As far as amendment 5 is concerned, Peter Black expressed it well, we have continually made the necessary representations to the UK Government on public spending for policy areas. When the opportunity arises I will continue to do so, but it is not necessary to reiterate that as a debating point for this discussion.

I welcome the broad support that William gave in many key areas for the policy. There is broad agreement in the Assembly on the importance of housing. It has been a pleasure to discuss these issues in the Local Government and Housing Committee, because there is a general understanding of the importance of the housing agenda. However, I agree with Peter Black, in that I do not think that there should be dogma in the definition of home ownership. We must provide a choice and we must understand that people value the choice that they make. It is also important to recognise the important contribution made by local government in identifying local solutions. That relates to the point made by Peter Law.

Janet Davies is right that it would be nice if the seven principles listed on page 2 of the document were self-evident and real. We must discuss some of these issues. Unfortunately, housing has been on the back foot for a long time in terms of government priorities. I am delighted that it is a priority for the administration in the National Assembly, and will continue to be so.

Janet alluded to the prudential borrowing that is to be introduced, and that is to be welcomed in the Government’s White Paper. However, I do not think that that will be a panacea to all the housing ills. That is why it is important that we continue to examine and undertake further work on the community mutual options.

Important points on heating were made by Karen Sinclair and Brian Gibbons. We must take the opportunity to improve the scheme when we can, and I will take Karen’s points on board. I have received much correspondence from Members suggesting improvements to this home energy efficiency scheme, and I will review the scheme in light of these comments.

Ann Jones alluded to the important work that we have undertaken with the fire services and others on hardwire smoke alarms and sprinkler systems. I wish to continue this work with the fire service. I met the North Wales Fire Authority before Christmas and it was delighted with the work that the Assembly is undertaking and the commitment we are showing to addressing these issues. We can tell ourselves that we are taking a lead in the UK in this area, and we must continue to do so. Perhaps if these policies had been operational, some of the tragic deaths that have occurred recently may not have occurred. That is the importance of the strategy. It will deliver something on the ground that can save people or improve their lives.

I also think that it is important, as Brian said, that we examine the issue of flexibility in housing and the idea of a house as a lifetime home, so that your house suits your needs when you are young and have a family and also enables you to cope when you are older. That is a key area of policy within the housing strategy.

On John Griffiths’s comments, everybody in the Chamber could allude to issues in their constituency because housing is an issue for all of us. I am aware of the prefabricated housing issue, and I am currently considering this.

On abandoned cars, there are good initiatives in Wales. One such initiative is that in which Swansea City and County Council is involved. We hope that these good practices that are emerging across local government in conjunction with other partners can be merged across Wales.

We know that there are many challenges in this document, and that it will be a difficult agenda to drive forward, but the important thing is that through the Welsh housing quality standard we are embarking upon the important first step towards improving people’s lives.