Mr. Chamberlain went on to say that the schemes for
dealing with the slums laid before the Ministry are more numerous than iq the whole history of the problem. Many local authorities had been prevented from under- taking slum clearances because the present terms of com- pensation were inadequate. Under his own Act, as he gallantly acknowledged, the owners of houses which are not at all insanitary, but, on the contrary, are in very good condition, may be the victims of expropriation at the mere site value. This section of the Act ought certainly to be altered, and we gather from Mr. Chamberlain's words that it will be. For the rest we sympathize with Mr. Chamberlain as against the Labour Party when he insists on the virtues of reconditioning where recon- ditioning is possible. If a house really can be recon- ditioned the rent need not rise much, if at all, and the worker can remain where he wants to live—near his work. But, of course, there are areas in which recon- ditioning would be no solution at all. A tonic is useless to a person who is visibly dying for want of a surgical operation.
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