Contributions
2,291 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDPrivate Rented Sector OmbudsmanI thank my noble friend. It will need a lot of communication. We have already had Make Things Right in the social rented sector, which has increased people’s awareness of the…18 Jan 2024HANSARDPrivate Rented Sector OmbudsmanMy Lords, of course we will, but what is important is the tenants, who sometimes do not know where to go. In my opinion and that of the department, it is important that they have…18 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformThat is not the case. If noble Lords have listened to some of the things that the Secretary of State has said in the last many months, they will know that we are committed to…11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformMy Lords, I can only reiterate what I have said. We are reviewing this, and it is a complex matter that has ramifications throughout housing law. We are looking at and reviewing…11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformI assure the noble Lord that I shall go back and take that message to my Secretary of State, but I can also say that we are looking at the Scottish model.11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformIt is extremely complex; it affects many other legal issues to do with housing—with leaseholds and freeholds. We are looking at it as we move through the Bill. What we are putting…11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformI shall certainly do that—I thought that my noble friend Lady Penn had agreed to that letter, but I shall look into it and sort out a letter. But I think that my offer of meeting…11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformMy Lords, the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill contains a substantial package of measures to increase leaseholders’ rights as consumers and home owners. We have prioritised the…11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformWe are dealing with it—it is a big piece of work, but we are dealing with it. It is happening all the time. What I have said to the noble Baroness and others many times at the…11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformMy Lords, I will not apologise; the measures in the Bill will benefit owners of flats and houses alike. The majority of houses have always been provided as freehold, and there are…11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformI thank my noble friend for that question—but not as far as I am concerned, no.11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformI did not quite catch that—but with regard to going up to Scotland and bringing back that legislation, the law is very different in Scotland, and we have to look at it.11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformI assure my noble friend that we remain committed to continuing our leasehold and commonhold reforms, and the Bill is a major step forward. The Government remain committed to a…11 Jan 2024HANSARDLeasehold ReformI am not going to give noble Lords any different answer. We are committed, and the Secretary of State has made it very clear that we are committed as a Government, to commonhold.…11 Jan 2024HANSARDSocial Housing: MouldYes. I think we already said in the levelling-up Act that the £11.5 billion in the affordable homes programme can be used for social housing, as it has in the past. It is…10 Jan 2024HANSARDSocial Housing: MouldNo, we have not considered that, and I am not sure that local authorities have the capacity to that at this time. But it is important that we make sure that tenants know their…10 Jan 2024HANSARDSocial Housing: MouldMy noble friend is right; this is all about communication, to make sure that tenants know what to do if they have an issue with their property. We have had a number of…10 Jan 2024HANSARDSocial Housing: MouldMy Lords, there are differences between the rented housing tenures. Almost half of private rental landlords own a single property and the vast majority own fewer than five so,…10 Jan 2024HANSARDSocial Housing: MouldI thank the right reverend Prelate for that question. I do not know the answer to it, but I will certainly find out. I know that this is an important issue. Housing associations…10 Jan 2024HANSARDSocial Housing: MouldMy Lords, the English Housing Survey found that in 2022, 10% of social homes failed to meet the decent homes standard and 5% had a problem with damp. The Government have now…10 Jan 2024