Private Landlords: Tenants with Pets

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Tuesday 15th June 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I thank my noble friend for coming up with practical suggestions for how tenants and landlords could work together to ensure wider pet ownership. It is of course for the landlord to consider each case on its merits.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

My Lords, pets have done much to help those recovering from medical incidents. This cannot be overestimated. Following the updating of the Government’s model agreement for shorthold assured tenancies in January, to encourage landlords to allow pets, what will the Government do to help allay landlords’ concerns over the inadequacy of a five-week deposit to address any pet damage at the end of the tenancy? Are there plans to allow for a larger deposit to be taken at the outset or, alternatively, a monthly sum to be added to the rent to pay for damage that is refundable at the end of the tenancy to the extent that it is not required? I declare my interest in rental property as in the register, but I have no tenants who have asked to have a pet—although some have them quietly without mentioning it.

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My noble friend is right to point out the impact of the Tenant Fees Act 2019. The Government recommend that the rental deposit of five weeks is a maximum rather than a default. Charging a deposit of four weeks’ rent would provide leeway to expand it to five weeks for such things as pet ownership and also to take up some of the suggestions that we have heard today around insurance or potentially looking at rent levels to accommodate wider pet ownership.

Rogue Landlords Register

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Wednesday 26th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

I do not accept that it has been a failure, partly because of the time taken going through the process of charging and convicting individuals. As I pointed out in the previous answer, it is one of a number of measures that we introduced to tackle the issue of rogue landlords. Obviously, we are consulting on a number of wider measures, including increasing the scope and accessibility of this database as part of that White Paper. More will be announced later in the year.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

My Lords, I refer to my entry in the register of interests. Can the Minister comment on the position on creating a register of short-term lets, whether by council area or more generally? These now represent a significant part of the rental market; most are unknown to councils and, consequently, avoid safety checks.

Social Housing

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Monday 24th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I accept that this should not always be about a drive for volume and that we need quality, decent-sized family housing and to ensure that we have the homes we need for people with particular disabilities.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

Are the Government considering setting aside a portion of the affordable homes programme funding announced by the Chancellor in March 2020 specifically for more social housing? My interest is declared in the register.

Rent Arrears: Covid-19

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Thursday 20th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, we continue to survey this very carefully indeed. As I pointed out, although we have seen an increase, according to the survey, in the number of renters in arrears, the vast majority of them—some two-thirds—have arrears of no greater than two months.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

My Lords, I declare my interests as in the register. Can the Minister comment on what plans the Government have to assist small and medium landlords who are unable to recover Covid-related rent arrears and face potential enforcement action by their mortgage providers? Might the Government persuade mortgage providers to extend their overall repayment period in these cases, instead of seeking to enforce the mortgage?

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My noble friend will be pleased to know that, to support landlords, mortgage lenders have agreed to offer payment holidays of up to six months, including for buy-to-let mortgages. Although that is available only until July 2021, from 1 April 2021 there have been moves to enable forbearance options tailored to the individual landlord.

Leaseholders and Property Management Companies

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Thursday 29th April 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, this is clearly a wide-ranging question that raises all kinds of issues. I will have to write to the noble Baroness on the progress of that matter.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

My Lords, I declare my interests as set out in the register. Given the growth in short-term lets since the changes in legislation in 2015, most of which are beyond the permitted 90 days per year, could the Minister look at whether landlords and management companies can be given the power to charge more to those letting short-term in order to reflect the additional usage of communal areas, given the high turnover of their short-term let properties, which is otherwise unfairly borne by long-term block residents who do not get any of the benefits from the higher rent?

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I am not sure that you can charge differentially because of the extent of a letting period. I know managing agents will seek to maximise their percentage within the market structure, but the law means that you have to justify what you charge.

No-fault Evictions

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Wednesday 27th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I would argue that the furlough scheme and the support we have given in billions in welfare, in addition to the commitment towards homelessness, which is increasing from £700 million this year to £750 million, is precisely the sort of leadership the Government are providing to support people to remain settled in accommodation and take rough sleepers off our streets.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

My Lords, I declare my interests as in the register. The Citizens Advice survey found that 46% of tenants who make a complaint are then evicted by their landlord using Section 21—the no-fault eviction power. Can the Government find the time to deal with this very real problem through some form of legislation due before this House, whether in its own Bill or by piggybacking the relevant clauses into another Bill, as this is now even more pressing in this coronavirus and lockdown era? People, particularly families, have more than enough to cope with at the moment, and need to know that they have a safe and secure roof over their heads.

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I point out that there is a firm commitment to the abolition of Section 21, while strengthening the powers to evict on other grounds. That reform will come forward when parliamentary time allows.

Covid-19: Places of Worship

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Tuesday 3rd November 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, it is very difficult for me to hear such a question put so eloquently by someone whom I regard as a sort of childhood hero. Those who made this difficult decision feel that there can still be a form of communal worship, as many people of faith have gone through the experience of going to mass or a service in a mosque via Zoom or other technology. That shift has taken place. It is not the same, but even the service I went to was very limited in capacity but many more were participating remotely. That is available as we enter the second lockdown. I really pray that we learn to live with this virus in a way that does not impinge on people of faith.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

My Lords, in the consideration of all this, was any thought given to the projection of possible virus during singing, as opposed to other parts of the service, and whether there was a need for special attention to be paid to that detail to enable these churches to again be open? Even if they have sufficient spacing, there is a danger that someone who already is a carrier has a projectile element in their voice and their breath going out, so this should be taken into account.

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, singing remains a high-risk activity at this time, so there cannot be any congregational singing in any form. Professionals may still practise music or record music for broadcast from a place of worship during this period.

Planning

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Wednesday 16th September 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, the approach is obviously to move to a more zonal system, although there needs to be a strong design code. The design codes and pattern books draw on the historical use of the Victorians to build beautiful homes, the likes of which we see in Bath and other parts of the country. The aim is to create a range of designs that will enable speedier planning. That is the benefit, rather than having an ad hoc approach to design.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

My Lords, while there are many good things in this plan, it is essential that we retain the planning committee rights of local councils, which are so much more in touch with their communities than more remote groups. Local councils can see whether, for example, it is all right to add two extra floors to a house, but if that can just be done without any permission being sought as is suggested, that could be deadly for local people who suddenly find that that happens, and the next one does it and the next one. It really is important to leave the powers with local councils, which really care about their residents, and the residents feel closer to them than they do to a Parliament that often seems rather remote from them. Can I be assured that local councils will not be ousted in this matter?

[Lord Greenhalgh (Con)]

My Lords, I can assure my noble friend that local authorities will be essential in the process. They will continue to prepare the local plans and councils will have better, stronger tools to ensure good design and make the most of brownfield land.

Homelessness

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Lord Greenhalgh

Monday 13th July 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh]

I do not agree that renters have received nothing. The noble Baroness will be aware that we have strengthened the welfare safety net with a boost to the welfare system of over £6.5 billion, and that we have increased the local housing allowance rates to cover the lowest 30% of market rents. In addition, a budget of £180 million has been made available for local authorities to distribute in discretionary housing payments.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con) [V]]

My Lords, did the Minister see the headline in last Friday’s Times:

“City landlords fear for future of offices with trains still empty”?


Would not a practical solution be for people who will possibly be made homeless to have an opportunity to rent this type of office? It would have to be with government approval, but it would help to deal with the panic over what will happen to businesses in the future and it would also help homeless people, at least on an emergency basis.

[Lord Greenhalgh]

I thank my noble friend. She will be aware that over £0.5 billion has been made available to support rough sleepers and get them into longer-term move-on accommodation. We expect local authorities and registered providers to bring forward units of accommodation from a variety of sources, and this could include repurposing buildings such as offices, where appropriate.