Regulation of private renting

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 8 Dec 2021 Closed: 2 Sep 2022 Parliament page
The number of people living in private rented accommodation has doubled in the last 20 years, and there are now an estimated 4.4 million privately rented households in England, with rents outside London increasing at the fastest rate on record in 2021. While most tenants have a good experience of … Read more
15 Recommendations
11 Conclusions
1 Report
1 Oral session
3 Letters
1 Event
Activity timeline 7 events
8 Sep
2022
Correspondence
2 Sep
2022
Report published
13 Apr
2022
Report published
22 Feb
2022
Correspondence
22 Feb
2022
Correspondence
31 Jan
2022
Oral evidence
31 Jan
2022
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House
Oral evidence sessions 1 session
31 Jan 2022
View on parliament.uk
Regulation of private renting
Anny Cullum · Acorn the Union Ben Beadle · National Residential Landlords' Association Ben Beadle · National Residential Landlords Association Caroline Crowther · The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Jeremy Pocklington CB · Ministry of Defence Ms Ruth Ehrlich · Shelter Tamara Sandoul · The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Tracey Waltho · Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Forty-Ninth Report - Regulation of private renting HC 996 13 Apr 2022 26 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
5 results
Clear
4 Recommendation Rejected
Forty-Ninth Report - Regulation of…
Local Authorities are constrained by the Department’s approach to licensing landlords.
Local Authorities are constrained by the Department’s approach to licensing landlords. In 2010, the Department introduced legislation allowing local authorities to require licences from landlords for more properties that the minimum requirements (the only properties that need licenses are larger … Read more
Government Response
The government considers current arrangements for licensing schemes strike the right balance, allowing local authorities to use selective licensing effectively without placing undue burdens on landlords where additional licensing schemes are not needed.
HM Treasury
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12 Conclusion Rejected
Forty-Ninth Report - Regulation of…
In 2010, the Department introduced legislation allowing local authorities to require licences from landlords for...
In 2010, the Department introduced legislation allowing local authorities to require licences from landlords for more properties than the minimum requirements (the only properties that need licenses are larger houses in multiple occupation—those with at least five people from more … Read more
Government Response
The government considers current arrangements for licensing schemes strike the right balance, allowing local authorities to use selective licensing effectively without placing undue burdens on landlords where additional licensing schemes are not needed.
HM Treasury
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13 Recommendation Rejected
Forty-Ninth Report - Regulation of…
In 2015, the Department added a requirement that selective licensing schemes covering over 20% of...
In 2015, the Department added a requirement that selective licensing schemes covering over 20% of a council’s local area or rented housing stock must be approved by the Secretary of State. It told us it introduced this requirement to ensure … Read more
Government Response
The government disagrees with the recommendation to assess the current arrangements for licensing schemes, stating that the current balance allows effective use of selective licensing without undue burdens on landlords. However, they will work with local authorities and the Local Government Association to develop a selective licensing best practice sharing support for LAs and simplified the selective licensing application form.
HM Treasury
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14 Conclusion Rejected
Forty-Ninth Report - Regulation of…
To apply for approval for a selective licensing scheme, local authorities need a good understanding...
To apply for approval for a selective licensing scheme, local authorities need a good understanding of their local private rental market, which is hard to gather without already having a scheme in place.30 The time and resource needed to produce … Read more
Government Response
The government disagrees with the recommendation to assess current arrangements for licensing schemes, stating that the current system strikes the right balance.
HM Treasury
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15 Recommendation Rejected
Forty-Ninth Report - Regulation of…
Long wait times, made worse during the COVID-19 pandemic, are also a barrier to local...
Long wait times, made worse during the COVID-19 pandemic, are also a barrier to local regulation.33 For example, Liverpool City Council had a city-wide scheme from 2015 to 2020 that was popular locally, which lapsed while the Department was considering … Read more
Government Response
The government disagrees with the recommendation to assess current arrangements for licensing schemes, stating that the current system strikes the right balance.
HM Treasury
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Government Response AI assessment · 26 of 15 classified
Accepted 11
Acknowledged 7
Not Addressed 3
Rejected 5
Total 15 recs + 11 conclusions
Correspondence 3 letters
8 Sep 2022 Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington CB, Permanent Secretary, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to Dame Meg Hillier, Chair, Committee on Public Accounts, re Regulation of private renting, dated 13 July 2022
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22 Feb 2022 Correspondence from Jeremy Pocklington CB, Permanent Secretary, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, re Further information following the oral evidence session: Regulation of private renting, Public Accounts Committee, dated 10 February 2022
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22 Feb 2022 Correspondence from Caroline Crowther Director, Private Rented Sector & Leasehold, re Further information following the oral evidence session: Regulation of private renting, Public Accounts Committee, dated 11 February 2022
Parliament page