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Legal's General Editor: Jan Luba QC |
14th October 2015 Update |
POLICY ISSUES IN HOUSING LAW
Social Housing Lettings
The UK Government has published a summary of the latest statistics on
lettings of council and housing association properties in England. The
figures cover 2014-15. For the summary,
click here The figures are based on data collected through
the CORE (Continuous Recording of Lettings and Sales) arrangements. For
those more detailed figures,
click here The available data
includes an area-by-area table split by housing association and council
data. For that table,
click here For a
summary of key issues relating to quality of the data that users of the
social housing lettings statistical report need to be aware of,
click here
Assured Tenants: Notices Seeking Possession
On 1 October 2015, the April 2015 version of the prescribed form of the
“section 8” notice of seeking possession against an assured tenant (Form
3) was amended again. For the amendment, see regulation 4(4)(a) of the
Assured Shorthold Tenancy Notices and Prescribed Requirements (England)
Regulations 2015. For those regulations,
click here
Council and Housing Association Rents
On 9 October 2015, the UK Government published a new consultation document
on its proposals to require higher-earning social housing tenants to pay
market rents. For the consultation details see
Housing Law Consultations
(below).
Homelessness in England
On 8 October 2015, the Local Government Ombudsman reminded councils in
England to decide homelessness applications promptly and effectively,
following an investigation into how one London council had handled a
homelessness application. She said:
“I appreciate the challenge councils face in response to homelessness and
the pressures their resources are under but, as is evident in this case,
councils must remember they can be dealing with the most vulnerable
members of society who are reliant on them for the most basic of needs.
Councils must ensure they are following the correct procedures in deciding
applications.” For the full press release,
click here
Housing Associations and the ‘Right to Buy’
At the Conservative Party Conference 2015, the Prime Minister announced
that a deal had been struck between the main housing associations and the
UK Government to extend a right to buy to housing association tenants. For
the UK Government announcement,
click here For the National Housing Federation response to
announcement,
click here For media comment on the ‘deal’,
click here For a lawyer’s commentary on the ‘deal’,
click here For the
latest House of Commons Library Briefing on extending the right to buy in
England,
click here For the
Local Government Association assessment that extending the Right to Buy
scheme to housing association tenants will cost £6 billion over the next
four years,
click here
Disability & Homelessness
The organisation Homeless Link
has published a briefing about autism and homelessness. It offers useful
information on engagement and support, when working with homeless people
on the autistic spectrum. For a
copy,
click here
Private Renting in Scotland
On 7 October 2015, the Scottish Government published a new Bill to amend
the law relating to private rented housing and to establish a new type of
tenancy to be known as a ‘private residential tenancy’. The Bill will be
considered in the Scottish Parliament. For the announcement,
click here For further details of the Bill, see
Housing laws in the pipeline
(below).
Selective licensing
Hyndburn Council introduced selective licensing in December 2012, to help
tackle low housing demand and requires landlords to comply with a range of
conditions to ensure good property management. Three local landlords have
recently become the first to be prosecuted for failing to comply with the
requirements of the council's Selective Licensing Scheme. For the details,
click here
Housing Benefit
On 30 September 2015, the DWP issued a new circular (HB U1/2015) on the limited impact of other benefit sanctions on
Housing Benefit. For a copy,
click here
Housing & Bankruptcy
A new House of Commons Library briefing covers the facts and issues
arising when a home owner is made bankrupt. For a copy,
click here
Regulating Social Housing
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HOUSING LAWS IN THE PIPELINE
Welfare Reform and Work Bill
This UK Government Bill was published on 9 July 2015. It makes provision
about: (1) the benefit cap; (2) social security and tax credits; (3) loans
for mortgage interest; and (4) social housing rents. It had its Second
Reading in the House of Commons on 20 July 2015 and is being considered in
detail by a public bill committee during September and October. For the
Bill,
click here For the explanatory notes,
click here To follow the progress of the Bill,
click here. For the documents relating to the Bill
(including several impact assessments),
click here The Committee which will review the Bill has
issued a call for written evidence. For the details,
click here
For the official records of the
Committee debates to date,
click here For the latest CPAG update on the Bill,
click here For the Memorandum to the Joint Committee on
Human Rights from the UK Government about the Bill,
click here
Immigration Bill
This UK Government Bill was published on 17 September 2015. Clauses 12-15
address residential tenancies.
They would create four new offences to target those landlords and agents
who deliberately and repeatedly fail to comply with the right-to-rent
scheme by letting to tenants subject to immigration restrictions or fail
to evict tenants who they know or have reasonable cause to believe are
disqualified from renting as a result of their immigration status. For a
copy of the Bill,
click here For
the Explanatory Notes on Clauses,
click here
For the official Impact Assessment,
click here For a housing lawyer’s commentary,
click here The Commons Second Reading was completed on 13
October 2015. For the ILPA Information sheet on the Bill,
click here For the Migrant Rights Network’s Briefing on
the Bill,
click here To follow the progress of the Bill,
click here For the House of Commons Library Briefing on
the Bill,
click here
Housing Bill
This UK Government Bill was announced in the Queen’s Speech on 28 May 2015
but has yet to be published. For the official outline of its content,
click here The official
briefing about the Queen’s Speech contains the details at pages 27-29. For
that,
click here For a commentary on
the likely content of the Bill,
click here
On 4 July 2015 the Chancellor and
the Prime Minister released a joint statement indicating that their plans,
“which will form part of the Housing Bill to be introduced this autumn,
include steps to build discounted homes for first time buyers on all
reasonable sized developments, unlock public land for hundreds of
thousands of new homes and back small builders with planning changes”
(emphasis added). For the statement,
click here
Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland)
Bill 2015
This is a Government Bill introduced in the Scottish Parliament on 7
October 2015. For a copy of the Bill, the Explanatory Notes and related
official documents,
click here For the final Business and Regulatory Impact
Assessment on the Bill,
click here
For the Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment on the Bill,
click here
For the final Equality Impact Assessment for the Bill,
click here
Renting Homes (Wales) Bill
Housing (Amendment) Bill
Houses in Multiple Occupation Bill
This is a Bill introduced in the Assembly on 7 September 2015 by the
Northern Ireland Executive. It
would make provision for and in connection with the licensing of houses in
multiple occupation In Northern Ireland. For a copy of the Bill,
click here For the explanatory memorandum,
click here
To follow the progress of the Bill,
click here
Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation)
Bill
This is a Private Members Bill introduced by Karen Buck MP. It would amend
the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 to require that residential rented
accommodation is provided and maintained in a state of fitness for human
habitation. It had a First Reading on 24 June 2015 and its Second Reading
is scheduled for 16 October 2015. For details on the progress of the Bill,
click here For a commentary on its content,
click here For the
Shelter Blog on the Bill and its importance,
click here
This is a Private Members Bill introduced by Dame Angela Watkinson MP. It
would amend the Local Government Finance Act 1992 to make provision for
collecting information about tenure and the details of private landlords.
It had a First Reading on 24 June 2015 and its Second Reading is scheduled
for 30 October 2015. For details on the progress of the Bill,
click here
Crown Tenancies Bill
This is a Private Members Bill introduced by Mark Pawsey MP. It would
provide that Crown tenancies (mainly of properties owned by Government
Departments) may be assured tenancies for the purposes of the Housing Act
1988, subject to certain exceptions, and would modify the assured
tenancies regime in relation to certain Crown tenancies (including by
provision of a new ground for possession).
It had a First Reading on 24 June 2015 and its Second Reading had
been scheduled for 11 September 2015 but was objected-to and has now been
put back to 6 November 2015. For a copy of the Bill,
click here For the Explanatory Notes,
click here For
details on the progress of the Bill,
click here For the House of Commons Library Briefing note
that has been prepared for the Second Reading,
click here
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NEW HOUSING CASES
R(F) v Barking & Dagenham LBC
8
October 2015
The
claimant was homeless. She had no leave to remain in the UK, no recourse
to public funds and no ‘live’ application for leave to remain. As a
result, she was not eligible for assistance under Housing Act 1996, Part 7
(Homelessness). She was the parent of a child (J) who was living with the
child’s father. Because she had no accommodation, the claimant had nowhere
the child could stay with her. She sought an order to compel the council
to provide her with accommodation where the child could stay, so that a
family court would be able to make a shared residence order. The High
Court said that there was “a
difficult but logically and legally arguable route by which the claimant
may be able to bring herself within the grace of the local authority by
way of reliance on J's Article 8 ECHR rights” but adjourned the claim to
be heard by a family court judge alongside the application for shared
residence. For the judgment,
click here
Ferrera v Hardy
7
October 2015
A tenant
claimed housing benefit to help pay her rent. She was content for the
council to pay the housing benefit direct to the landlords but, because
they lived abroad, the benefit was paid to an agent in the UK (Mr
Ferrera). Mr Hardy had the benefit of a long outstanding court judgment
against Mr Ferrera. He applied for a court order that the council pay the
benefit to him – instead of the agent – in satisfaction of that debt. A
judge made such an order for £7,281.20. The council applied to set that
aside. The order was reduced to £650. Mr Hardy appealed but the High Court
dismissed that appeal: [2013] EWHC 4164 (Ch). The Court of Appeal has
dismissed Mr Hardy’s further appeal. The agent had no right to the money.
The housing benefit legally belonged to the tenant. The judgment is noted
on LAWTEL.
Oxford City Council v Mohammed Waqas Anwar
28 September 2015
The defendant owned and managed a House in Multiple
Occupation (HMO) that was unlicensed and failed to comply with fire safety
and other requirements. Council officers found four occupants living in
the house, which had broken smoke alarms, a missing fire door and locks on
doors that could stop occupants escaping in the event of a fire. The house
was in poor repair, with damaged bathroom tiles, a filthy shower and
mouldy walls. At Oxford Magistrates' Court, the defendant pleaded guilty
to being in control of an unlicensed HMO and received a fine of £2,000 for
failing to obtain a licence. He also pleaded guilty to five breaches of
the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006
and received a separate fine of £1,250. He was also ordered to pay the
council’s full costs of £1,426 35. For details of the prosecution,
click here
Complaint against Hounslow Council
23 September 2015
Ms X was a vulnerable homeless woman fleeing domestic
abuse. She complained about the way that the council dealt with her
homelessness application. The council failed to provide her with
accommodation while it made enquiries. It also took too long to review its
decision that she was not in priority need and failed to follow the
correct process for carrying out the review. Overall, it took the council
62 weeks to reach a final decision about Ms X’s application. The council
also failed to respond to her complaints about what had happened. The
Local Government Ombudsman recommended £1,450 compensation and a range of
remedial measures. For the investigation report,
click here For the council’s subsequent apology,
click here
Bristol City Council v Adrian Hill
23 September 2015
The council obtained an injunction which prohibited
the defendant from “sitting, loitering or approaching people for the
purposes of begging anywhere in the City of Bristol.” On a committal
application, the court was satisfied that there had been numerous breaches
of the injunction. Although the individual breaches were relatively minor,
they were aggravated by: the persistent nature of the breaches; the
defendant's apparent reluctance to have any regard to the terms of the
order; the fact that the breaches started only two days after the
defendant was released from prison following committal for previous
breaches; and that the defendant had already been punished for breaches of
the same order which were of the same nature. He was sentenced to three
months immediate imprisonment. For the judgment,
click here
Wrekin Housing Trust v Holly Davies
14 September 2015
The trust was granted a conventional interim
injunction under section 1 of the Anti-social Behaviour Crime and Policing
Act 2014 to restrain anti-social behaviour by the defendant tenant. On the
return date, a full injunction was granted. The court was also asked to
consider a schedule of over a dozen breaches of the interim injunction
starting with the very date it had been granted. The court found all but
two alleged breaches established to the criminal standard of proof. For
the judgment,
click here
Mossbank Homes Ltd v Julie Reece
28 August 2015
An injunction was made requiring the defendant to
refrain from doing a number of acts of what would have been anti-social
behaviour. On an application for committal, the court was satisfied that
she had breached the injunction on 18 occasions. The judge said that the
“breaches complained of are appalling behaviour and would have been
greatly distressing for your neighbours and, in particular, children where
you live. Your behaviour is not acceptable. The nature of the breaches
found against you make it inevitable that a prison sentence must be
imposed”. The sentence was 26 weeks imprisonment “but because this is your
first set of breaches before the court I am able, just about, to say that
the prison sentence should be suspended”. For the judgment,
click here
Newcastle City Council v Colin Martin
10 August 2015
The council obtained an anti-social behaviour
injunction containing an exclusion zone. The defendant breached the order
and was sentenced to imprisonment for contempt. On his release, he was
reminded by the probation officer that the injunction was still in force.
He immediately breached the order again, by entering the exclusion zone on
two occasions. He was sentenced to three months immediate imprisonment.
For the judgment,
click here
Isis Housing v Michael Burn
23 July 2015
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HOUSING LAW CONSULTATIONS
Renting Social Housing
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NEW HOUSING LAW ARTICLES & PUBLICATIONS
Recent Developments in Housing Law
Jan Luba QC & Nic Madge
[2015] October issue of Legal Action magazine. Available in print
and on-line for Legal Action subscribers. To read the
article on-line,
click here
For back-issues of this series
of articles,
click here
Landlords - discriminate at your peril
Russell James and
Catherine Casserley [2015] 19
Landlord & Tenant Review 177
The Immigration Act 2014: "Not on the list you're not coming in; landlords
forced to discriminate" Elliot Schatzberger
[2015] Conveyancer and Property
Lawyer 395
The damages dog and its horrible bite: statutory damages for unlawful
eviction
Chris Bevan [2015] Conveyancer and
Property Lawyer 399
Selective licensing – challenging the consultation process
Julian Sidoli del Ceno and Abigail
Jackson [2015] 19 Landlord & Tenant
Review 206
Defects in flat and common parts - builder's liability under s.1 of the
Defective Premises Act 1972
Mark Pawlowski [2015] 19
Landlord & Tenant Review 217
Recognised tenants' associations: Part 2
Rebecca Cattermole [2015]
19 Landlord & Tenant Review 201
A welcome example of a hard case making good
(Arnold v Britton)
Janet Bignell [2015] 19
Landlord & Tenant Review 175
Drafting after Arnold v Britton
Paul Clark [2015]
Conveyancer and Property Lawyer
373
Arnold v Britton - why the tenants lost
Rawdon Crozier [2015] 19
Landlord & Tenant Review 209
Uncertainty of term again
Kester Lees and Julia Petrenko [2015] 19
Landlord & Tenant Review 212
'Generation buy' could leave behind those in greatest housing need
Stephen Holland [2015] Homeless Link
Blog 7 October. To read the article,
click here
DWP finally acts to end housing benefit 'maladministration' scandal
Patrick Butler [2015] Guardian 6
October. To read the article,
click here
Fighting Brent Council for rent in advance and a deposit for a disabled
man’s flat
[2015] Kate Belgrave Blog 6
October. To read the article,
click here
I fear the 1% cut to my social housing rent will lead to poorer service
Martin Wicks [2015] Guardian Housing
Network 6 October. To read the article,
click here
Universal Credit, Alternative Payment Arrangement (APAs) and Bedroom Tax
[2015] Forbes Solicitors Blog 5
October. To read the article,
click here This right-to-buy deal will wreck our plans for truly affordable homes Philip Glanville [2015] Guardian Housing Network 5 October. To read the article, click here |
THE HOUSING LAW DIARY 16 October 2015 30 October 2015 6 November 2015 13 November 2015 20 November 2015
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