Asked by Baroness Wilcox To ask Her Majesty’s Government what
progress they have made in encouraging the private rental sector to
increase housing supply. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of
State, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and
Wales Office (Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth) (Con)...Request free trial
Asked by
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To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they have
made in encouraging the private rental sector to increase
housing supply.
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My Lords, 20% of housing is in the private rented sector,
which has doubled since 2002. Since 2012, the Government
have been encouraging investment in the segment of the
private rented sector known as Build to Rent.
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I thank my noble friend for his short reply; it is very
helpful. Have the Government any plans to extend the
tenancy length before stamp duty land tax is charged, and
what are they doing to ensure that local authorities and
people in general are aware of the new changes that are
coming? I have only recently visited some of these things
that are being built and the people who are moving in. It
is absolutely wonderful to see the change; it is so well
suited to the fast-changing lives of our younger
generation.
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My Lords, I thank my noble friend for her encouragement
of my short responses, followed by her two questions.
Stamp duty land tax will not be payable by many people
purchasing tenancies; it will be very unusual outside
London, and then only at the higher-value end of the
market. Any changes are clearly a matter for the
Treasury. My noble friend is quite right about the need
for publicity for many of these excellent schemes that we
are pursuing and, quite apart from her and others’
questions, we obviously ensure that details are provided
on the website and that our partners are aware of this.
It is a very good story to tell: we are progressing many
changes through this House and the other place in
relation to the private rented sector.
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My Lords, the Minister has indicated that there has been
a considerable increase in the buy-to-let market. The
informed newspapers say that it is drying up. Are they
wrong?
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My Lords, if I may slightly correct the noble Lord, I
said that there was great growth in the private rented
sector generally. I think it is fair to say that there
has been a slowdown in the buy-to-let sector. Some of
that is in response to tax changes, but I think it has
stabilised now.
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My Lords, 99% of the growth of private renting has not
been about private landlords building new homes but
private landlords buying existing homes, hence the
corresponding decline in owner-occupation. May I ask the
Minister about the concerns of Generation Rent, which are
really about affordability and security—what you pay and
how long you can stay in the property? Is there any
progress with the important proposition from —then Secretary of State
for housing—that tenancies be for four years or so in the
future in normal circumstances, rather than six months to
one year, which can be so unsettling for tenants,
particularly those with families and children?
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My Lords, first, the noble Lord may not appreciate that
the latest figures indicate an increase, although a
modest one, in the rate of owner-occupation. On
Generation Rent and the issue of longer tenancies, he is
right that most of the private rented sector is not new
builds, although we have 97,000 in the pipeline for the
Build to Rent sector. However, in relation to longer
tenancies, the noble Lord is absolutely right that the
previous Secretary of State was in favour of this, as is
the present one—very much so. We are pursuing that with
the British Property Federation, which is the main player
here and is committed to offering three-year tenancies
and longer.
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My Lords, the National Planning Policy Framework is due
to report shortly. Will the Minister assure us that, in
order to incentivise Build to Rent—I have some hope that
this might provide additionality—there will not be
further policy shifts which will in effect will let
developers off the hook when it comes to their financial
contributions to councils with regard to the community
infrastructure levy and Section 106 agreements? They
provide important amenities and, in particular,
contributions to social and affordable housing. Secondly,
can he assure us that there will not be a trade-off in
the quality of build against speed and the quantity of
delivery?
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My Lords, quality of build is important and is included
in the NPPF; we have consulted on that and are now
considering the responses, as the noble Baroness will
know. There is also a commitment in the NPPF, as she will
know, to people who want to rent their homes, and a
particular provision on affordability.
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My Lords, I draw the attention of the House to my
interests as declared in the register. Will the
Government do more to encourage local authorities to
facilitate the conversion of redundant agricultural
buildings into residences to let?
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My Lords, we are clearly in favour of anything we can do
in that regard. As my noble friend will know, we are
progressing a policy of a higher premium on empty
buildings in legislation that is currently passing
through this House, and it is important that we look at
all avenues available to us to ensure that we use
buildings for housing.
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My Lords, I refer the House to my relevant interests.
While the overwhelming majority of private sector
landlords do a good job, does the Minister agree that
compulsory landlord licensing schemes, like the one in
the London Borough of Newham, are an effective way of
tackling rogue landlords? Will he join with me in
congratulating Newham Council, the present mayor,
Rokhsana Fiaz, and the previous mayor, , on the effective
work they have done in conjunction with the Metropolitan
Police which has protected tenants but also uncovered
council tax and income tax fraud, people trafficking, and
people hiding in plain sight who were wanted by the
Metropolitan Police in connection with serious crimes?
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My Lords, I know that the noble Lord has raised this
issue before, but not quite on such a broad front. This
morning it is almost as if he had been sponsored by the
London Borough of Newham. However, I congratulate him on
getting that in. It does much good work, as all London
boroughs do, and licensing, where appropriate, is
certainly effective. The noble Lord will know that we are
doing much in this House and elsewhere to encourage
effective licensing of landlords, and I thank him very
much for his support in that regard.
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My Lords, I declare my interest in the property I have. I
welcome what the Minister says about the increasing
supply of housing in the private sector given the latest
statistic released in March that 120,510 children are
living in temporary accommodation, which is the 26th rise
since December 2010. Would the Minister consider, among
other options, developing an arm’s-length body to oversee
the private rented sector so that more tenants would
enjoy security and more landlords would enjoy security
and a predictable future in their investment?
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My Lords, I congratulate the noble Earl on what he does
in promoting the position of children and families. That
is absolutely appropriate and is something that we watch
very closely. We will seriously consider any means of
ensuring that that figure, which is too high, comes down.
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