Anneliese Dodds, Labour’s parliamentary spokesperson for Reading East, today welcomed a raft of new measures and proposals to strengthen tenants’ protections and help maintain balanced communities.
 
Anneliese said: “Many of these proposals, if enacted, would make a massive difference in Reading East.
 
They will give tenants better protection, and make life easier for good landlords- at the same time as rooting out bad landlords.
 
I’m particularly pleased to see that the Government is considering a tighter planning regime for the development of Houses in Multiple Occupation. This is something that Labour has long argued for in Reading.
 
I will be responding to the Government's consultation with a strong message that stricter planning regulations are desperately required, in order to preserve family housing and promote more balanced communities”.
 
The proposals include:
 
1. A light-touch register of every private landlord in England. The register would aid good landlords and help tenants, as poor landlords (who give the whole sector a bad name) could be removed from the register for persistently failing in their duties to e.g. carry out essential repairs or protect tenants’ deposits. The register would be backed-up by an improved complaints and redress procedure.
2. Independent regulation for letting agents operating in the private sector- currently, letting and management agents do not need to have any professional credentials, so that when things go wrong, it is difficult for both tenants and landlords to seek redress.
3. Better support from local authorities for good landlords- with councils encouraged to set up ‘local lettings agencies’ to improve the provision of housing for those in need.
4. A change in the law so that tenants have at least two months notice if they have to leave due to repossession.
5. Consultation on new approaches to manage the impact of Houses in Multiple Occupation- including the option of tightening planning controls over HMOs.
 
DETAILED INFORMATION ON THE PROPOSALS:
1. A full copy of the Government's response to the Rugg Review, which has prompted many of the proposals, is available at: www.communities.gov.uk/publications/housing/responseruggreview. Many of the proposals will require primary legislation to be implemented, but some measures can be implemented now including creating a more professional sector through more training and better accreditation. The consultation on the new proposals will end on 31 July of this year.
2. A copy of the Rugg Review is available here: www.york.ac.uk/inst/chp/Projects/PRSreview.htm 
3. The Government will be issuing a full consultation in the Summer on how best to change the law to improve protections for tenants whose landlords are repossessed.
4.  Proposals concerning how conversions to HMOs can be better managed can be found at: www.communities.gov.uk/publications/planningandbuilding/housesmultipleconsultation