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of those nominated subsequently withdrew their applications for reasons
which in most cases were not given. The practical result has been
that a considerable proportion of accepted tenants were those who had
been living in Westminster, but were at work in some district not far
removed from Wormholt. Up to the end of the year 40 tenants from
the City were housed at Wormholt or had definite prospects of being
given houses there.
During the year 49 tenants were offered houses on the other estates
of the County Council, and 30 accepted.
Houghton Street.—London County Council Scheme under the Housing
Act, 1925, and London County Council (General Powers) Act, 1925.—In
pursuance of a scheme to demolish five working class dwellings in Houghton
Street the London County Council submitted proposals to the Minister of
Health for his approval. As the scheme was submitted under the 5th
schedule to the Housing Act, the Minister requested the City Council to
put forward any representations which it considered desirable with
reference to the re-housing of the tenants who would be displaced.
It was pointed out to the Minister that the re-housing proposals of the
London County Council on the Old Oak estate would not meet the needs
of at least three of the working class tenants who required to live in the
neighbourhood of their places of work. It was suggested that the London
County Council should find them accommodation near at hand.
Among the problems which render the whole matter of housing
so perplexing is the fact that, although the London County Council hope
to relieve overcrowding and insanitary conditions by providing dwellings
in the suburbs, it not infrequently happens that those applicants whose
qualifications in these respects seem most pressing are found to be ineligible
because of their social circumstances which do not come up to the
standards set by the County Council. The County Council, as owners,
quite justly wish to be assured that their tenants are in a position to pay
the rents and that they will maintain these new dwellings in a clean
and sanitary condition. As is only to be expected, this has resulted in a
number of the applicants living in overcrowded and insanitary conditions
being rejected.
In a number of instances the Council's sanitary inspectors have been
able to arrange in an informal manner with certain owners for the
removal of overcrowded families to better quarters elsewhere—a sort of
interchange satisfactory to all parties has taken place. In other instances
the financial difficulty has proved insuperable. "How," says an owner,
"can I give the tenant an additional room which has fallen vacant in my
house when I have not received rent for the past six weeks for the single
room which he has been occupying ?" Questions such as these are at