A prominent housing market commentator says Labour would introduce a tougher version of the Renters Reform Bill if it forms the next government.
Neil Cobbold – the managing director of automated rental payment service PayProp UK – has noted Labour’s amendments to the Conservative government’s Bill.
Not all of the amendments have been accepted but those rejected give an idea of Labour’s priorities.
Cobbold says: “Deputy Leader and Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing, Communities & Local Government, Angela Rayner, has promised that Section 21 will be abolished on the first day of a Labour government.
“We have also seen a number of rejected Labour amendments to the current Bill …. these include outlawing bidding wars, a call for a clearer definition of anti-social behaviour and a push to mandate landlords to join a redress scheme.
“It is however unlikely that a backbench proposal to introduce a cap on annual rent increases to either the Consumer Price Index or wage growth in the local area will become an official Labour policy.”
Cobbold says that since the Bill was introduced, more than 140 pages of amendments have been published – most of them from the government itself – but 26 further changes have been proposed by Labour.
Housing Secretary Michael Gove has already announced that the Bill’s most controversial measure, scrapping Section 21 evictions, will be paused until there are significant improvements to the court system.
Some of the other significant changes include:
– Allowing student landlords to regain possession after the academic year. (This only applies to HMOs but does not cover purpose-built student accommodation);
– Adopting the Decent Homes Standard in the PRS, which already applies to social housing. Local authorities would be given enforcement powers;
– Tougher investigative powers for housing authorities, including the powers to enter business premises without a warrant and require landlords and agents to provide information where there has been a possible breach of PRS regulations;
– A new clause allows the First-tier Tribunal to make an order against superior landlords, holding them liable for the behaviour of a rent-to-rent company. They could be asked to pay back up to two years of rent;
– Clearer rules against discrimination, making it illegal to discriminate against benefit claimants or tenants with children.
Time is running out to get this amended version of the Bill through both houses and on the statute books before the next general election, which some say could be as soon as May 2024.
