Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to monitor the implementation of Florrie's Law.

Following leaseholders’ concerns about high service charges for capital works programmes, the Department for Communities and Local Government introduced The Social Landlords Mandatory Reduction of Service Charges (England) Direction 2014 which capped service charges payable by local authority leaseholders in respect of major works funded, in whole or in part, by Government.

Local Government has legal duties to remain compliant with the law.

Leaseholders can challenge service charges for major works in the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) including where works are not recoverable under the lease, charges are not reasonable, or have not been carried out to a reasonable standard. In addition, The Social Landlords Discretionary Reduction of Service Charges (England) Direction 2014 allows social landlords to waive or reduce service charges by an amount that the landlord considers reasonable. For example, in cases of extreme hardship, the landlord may see fit to reduce charges to a leaseholder.