Confident regarding future HMO licences

ARTHUR Gould and your anonymous correspondent are mistaken in the comments about Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) and are confusing two issues – planning and licensing ( Echo, February 13).

This survey is being undertaken to inform the preparation of the new local plan for Charnwood; it has absolutely nothing to do with HMO licensing. It is being undertaken to inform the threshold above which no further HMOs will be granted planning permission in Loughborough – currently 20 per cent within 100m.

I believe that residents in Loughborough want this limit to be reduced.

The funding for this exercise comes in the form of an external grant and does not cost the council tax payer any money. We do not have a choice about how this money is spent and to suggest that it should be “used elsewhere in the community” is not an option.

Alongside other Loughborough councillors, I have campaigned long and hard for licensing to be introduced and believe we have finally succeeded in winning the battle.

In order to introduce either licensing of all HMOs and/or landlords in a given area, it requires Charnwood to ensure that there is sufficient evi- dence that this is needed. This will be the next stage in the process – something that was agreed unanimously by Cabinet in January.

I am now confident that licencing will happen in parts of Loughborough in the near future. Perhaps Mr Gould could explain how trying to stop two of the councillors who have fought on this issue to get re-elected in May is likely to assist in this process.