Reprieve for landlords as Renters Bill is watered down
THE Government has backed down on key elements of its raid on landlords after a backlash from Tory MPS.
In a letter to Conservative MPS seen by The Telegraph, Jacob Young, the levelling-up minister, laid out a series of amendments to the incoming Renters Reform Bill.
This included a commitment for the Lord Chancellor to review the “readiness” of the courts before no-fault evictions can be banned.
Other concessions include banning tenants from leaving in the first six months of entering into a new rolling tenancy, and exempting all student landlords – not just those with larger properties – from key parts of the Bill.
It comes after opposition from some 50 backbench MPS, many of whom are landlords, raising concerns that the reforms would breed uncertainty and drive property investors out of the market. The Bill will return to the Commons for report stage after Easter recess.
In his letter, Mr Young told MPS: “These improvements have the support of main landlord groups... which are calling for [the] Government to ‘crack on’ with the Bill and give much-needed certainty to the sector.”
One backbench MP told The Telegraph
his colleagues would continue to push for a further concession on rolling tenancies.
He said: “The only thing they haven’t conceded on is fixed-term tenancies, which I’m sure colleagues will continue to press. It should be down to individuals whether or not they enter into a fixed-term tenancy.”
The Bill, as it stands, will scrap fixedterm tenancies, allowing renters to stay in their rental homes indefinitely.
It sets in stone earlier promises from Mr Gove that the ban on no-fault evictions – a 2019 manifesto pledge – would be delayed until after the court system was reformed to deal with the changes.
Mr Young has also promised to commission an “annual parliamentary update” on the state of the private rented sector to monitor the effect of the reforms – including data on the supply, size and location of properties.
Landlord instructions, which are when a new investor pays an estate agent to market their property, have continued to dwindle – down 17 per cent last month. It is the 19th successive monthly negative reading, according to a report published by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.
Tom Darling, of the Renters’ Reform Coalition, a campaign group, said: “The Government’s flagship legislation to help renters is fast becoming a landlords’ charter.”