Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals on subletting through companies, such as Airbnb, to mandate the owner's permission before that accommodation is sublet.

The Government supports the shared economy, and subletting where the tenant has the landlord’s agreement. Generally, a tenancy agreement will state that before subletting, a tenant must obtain the landlord’s consent, which must not be unreasonably withheld, and we have made it clear in our model tenancy agreement for assured shorthold tenancies that tenants must always seek permission from the landlord before subletting all or part of the property.

The Government does not wish to be prescriptive in these matters and individuals should have regard to the terms of their tenancy agreement and/or lease when considering subletting.