Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has made recent progress on introducing a lifetime deposit for renters.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
As set out in our 2022 White Paper ‘A Fairer Private Rented Sector’, the market has responded to the ambition of our manifesto commitment for a ‘lifetime deposit’.
We continue to monitor the development of commercial lifetime deposit solutions, alongside keeping deposit protection and the broader deposit market under review.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to help ensure people who have to leave a property due to mould and damp are rehoused.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Secretary of State wrote to all providers of social housing setting out his expectations that they tackle dangerous damp and mould in their properties. We have now introduced ‘Awaab’s Law’, which will set new requirements for social landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould.
We have given local authorities strong enforcement powers that they must use if they identify dangerous damp and mould in privately rented homes and, through the Renters (Reform) Bill, are legislating to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time. Guidance for local authorities on how to ensure accommodation for homeless applicants is suitable can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-code-of-guidance-for-local-authorities/chapter-17-suitability-of-accommodation.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to monitor the interventions made by social housing providers to tackle damp and mould in residential properties.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Secretary of State wrote to all providers of social housing setting out his expectations that they tackle dangerous damp and mould in their properties. We have now introduced ‘Awaab’s Law’, which will set new requirements for social landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould.
We have given local authorities strong enforcement powers that they must use if they identify dangerous damp and mould in privately rented homes and, through the Renters (Reform) Bill, are legislating to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time. Guidance for local authorities on how to ensure accommodation for homeless applicants is suitable can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-code-of-guidance-for-local-authorities/chapter-17-suitability-of-accommodation.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance he provides to local authorities on the provision of suitable accommodation when private landlords fail to tackle damp and mould in residential properties.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Secretary of State wrote to all providers of social housing setting out his expectations that they tackle dangerous damp and mould in their properties. We have now introduced ‘Awaab’s Law’, which will set new requirements for social landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould.
We have given local authorities strong enforcement powers that they must use if they identify dangerous damp and mould in privately rented homes and, through the Renters (Reform) Bill, are legislating to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time. Guidance for local authorities on how to ensure accommodation for homeless applicants is suitable can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-code-of-guidance-for-local-authorities/chapter-17-suitability-of-accommodation.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when she plans to respond to the consultation entitled Non-domestic Private Rented Sector minimum energy efficiency standards: EPC B implementation, published on 17 March 2021.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We have reviewed the responses to our consultation on minimum energy efficiency standards in the non-domestic private rented sector. We are working hard to ensure the policy design remains fair and proportionate for landlords and tenants within the current economic climate and to help realise the benefits of energy efficiency, including reduced energy bills, more comfortable and healthier workplaces and greater energy security. We are continuing to engage with commercial building owners and representative groups to understand the different pathways to support decarbonisation and give certainty to the energy efficiency supply chain. We plan to publish the response in due course.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he is taking steps to reduce private sector rents in Nottingham East constituency.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government recognises the cost of living pressures that tenants are facing, and that paying rent is likely to be a tenant’s biggest monthly expense. The level of private sector rents is not directly a matter for Government, however, we are taking steps to increase housebuilding to help create a more sustainable and affordable housing market over the long term. The Government is on track to meet its manifesto commitment to deliver a million homes over this Parliament.
The Government also welcomes new institutional investment in the private rented sector. The Build to Rent sector has built over 100,000 new homes over the past 13 years and they continue to play a part in increasing the supply of homes in the private rented sector.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what information his Department holds on the proportion of private rental properties that do not meet the decent homes standard; and what plans he has to help improve housing quality.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The most recent data on properties in the private rented sector (PRS) that failed to meet the Decent Homes Standard (DHS) are published at: English Housing Survey 2022 to 2023: headline report (data on dwelling condition is in Chapter 4).
Through the Renters (Reform) Bill, we are legislating to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the PRS for the first time.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he is taking steps to help tackle increases in average monthly rent for private tenants.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The Government recognises the cost of living pressures that tenants are facing, and that paying rent is likely to be a tenant’s biggest monthly expense. The level of private sector rents is not directly a matter for Government, however, we are taking steps to increase housebuilding to help create a more sustainable and affordable housing market over the long term. The Government is on track to meet its manifesto commitment to deliver a million homes over this Parliament.
The Government also welcomes new institutional investment in the private rented sector. The Build to Rent sector has built over 100,000 new homes over the past 13 years and they continue to play a part in increasing the supply of homes in the private rented sector.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following recent findings by the Resolution Foundation regarding the affordability and quality of housing, what steps they are taking to (1) address, and (2) mitigate, those challenges.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Full details of the Government’s long-term plan for housing are available on gov.uk. This includes measures to increase the overall supply and availability of safe, warm and affordable homes. Boosting housing supply is key to affordability: we are on track to deliver our commitment to build one million homes this Parliament, are investing significant funding in affordable housing programmes through the £11.5 billion Affordable Homes Programme and £6 billion Affordable Homes Guarantee Scheme, and we have helped over 876,000 households purchase a home since spring 2010 through Government backed schemes.
Housing quality is also central to this plan. We have seen a strong decrease in the number of non-decent homes since 2010. This government has introduced the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, including Awaab’s Law, and is applying the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time through the Renters (Reform) Bill, to ensure that all tenants benefit from homes that are safe and decent
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of regional disparities in rental prices across the UK; and what steps they are taking to address affordability challenges for tenants.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The ONS publishes a number of regional datasets regarding the cost of private rented sector lettings, such as the monthly (attached) Price Index of Private Rents and an annual (attached) Housing affordability report, and DLUHC publishes its own annual (attached) English Housing Survey.
Individuals who need help to make their rent payments may be eligible for a range of support through the welfare system. From April 2024, the Government will raise Local Housing Allowance rates to the 30th percentile of local market rents. This significant investment of £1.2 billion means 1.6 million low-income households will gain, on average, nearly £800 per year in additional help towards their rental costs in 2024/25. For those who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs and need more support, Discretionary Housing Payments and Household Support Fund grants are also available from local authorities.