No-fault Evictions

Baroness Pinnock Excerpts

Thursday 26th October 2023 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Swinburne (Con)]

As the House can imagine, this is a complex area; court reform is really important, but it is also important to understand that the statistics are actually relatively good for the judiciary at this time. We are hearing that, of those that actually have a target here, the Ministry of Justice and His Majesty’s Courts & Tribunals Service already meet the requirement for hearings to be within four to eight weeks of receipt in over 95% of courts. The time it now takes has gone down to seven weeks rather than 25 weeks a year earlier, so things are happening but a lot more can be done.

[Baroness Pinnock (LD)]

For those families dependent on housing benefit to pay their rent, the local housing allowance has been frozen since 2020, and that frozen figure is based on 2018 private rental figures. This forces many families into poverty and food banks so they can manage to pay their way. Can the Minister assure the House that the Government will unfreeze the local housing allowance and bring it up to the local housing allowance rate that it should be?

[Baroness Swinburne (Con)]

I am afraid I cannot give the noble Baroness that specific assurance. The Government recognise the cost of living pressures that tenants face, and that paying rent is likely to be a tenant’s biggest monthly expense. Some 8 million of the most vulnerable households across the UK will continue to be supported through the next winter by additional cost of living payments.