Clause 21
Standards relating to competence and conduct
20:12:00
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities ()
I beg to move,
That this House does not insist on its amendment 13 to which the
Lords have disagreed, and agrees with the Lords in their
amendment 13B in lieu.
We are bringing the Bill back to the House for what I hope is the
final time, to get this vital legislation on to the statute book.
It seeks to enable the biggest change in social housing
regulation in a decade and to drive the change that is so
desperately needed in the social rented sector.
When the Bill was last before the House, we made important
amendments to clauses on competency and conduct standards in
relation to mandatory qualifications. They made provision to
require senior housing managers and senior housing executives of
registered providers to have, or be working towards,
appropriate-level housing management qualifications. We
subsequently tabled amendment 13B in the other place to ensure
that relevant managers employed by organisations that deliver
housing management services on behalf of a registered provider
are also captured by the legislation, as was our original policy
intention.
(Strangford) (DUP)
I have no doubt that we all welcome and support professionalism
from those who check the regulations. I am always perplexed that
we do not have the same regulations in Northern Ireland. Is it
the Minister’s intention to ensure with the appropriate body in
Northern Ireland that professionalism can also be effective
there?
The hon. Gentleman is, as ever, a fantastic champion for Northern
Ireland and its people. We will, of course, continue to have
conversations with the relevant bodies in Northern Ireland,
because it is important that social housing, wherever it is
provided within the United Kingdom, is up to the appropriate
standard. I know he will continue to champion that cause.
In closing, I would just like to put on record one final time my
and my Department’s heartfelt thanks to Grenfell United and all
other stakeholders for their strong constructive engagement on
this critical legislation. I hope that, following today, we will
see it on the statute book incredibly soon.
(Greenwich and Woolwich)
(Lab)
I intend to be brief, because the sole amendment we are
considering is entirely uncontentious.
As you will no doubt recall, Madam Deputy Speaker, the Opposition
welcomed the concession the Government made in the other place
last year with regard to professional training and
qualifications, and the resulting addition of clause 21 to the
Bill. Having pressed in Committee for that clause to be
strengthened, we also welcomed the Government’s amendment to it,
which was tabled on Report earlier this year on the basis that it
largely assuaged our concerns. We support Lords amendment 13B in
lieu of Commons amendment 13, as do the relevant trade bodies and
tenant groups including Grenfell United and Shelter, whom we once
again commend for the role they played in convincing the
Government to incorporate qualification requirements in the
Bill.
Lords amendment 13B is a technical amendment that has three main
effects. First, it will ensure that the qualification
requirements in clause 21 capture relevant managers working for
organisations which deliver housing management services on behalf
of a registered provider. Secondly, it will ensure that
contractual agreements between registered providers and delegated
services providers and relevant sub-agreements contain terms
stipulating that their relevant managers should have, or be
working towards, a specified qualification in housing management,
thus enabling registered providers to take action against
delegated services providers that are not compliant. Thirdly, the
amendment expands on definitions of services providers and
specific roles, and provides for consultation before setting a
standard and before giving a direction to set a standard.
We agree with their lordships that the changes are necessary if
we are to ensure that the sector as a whole delivers high-quality
professional services of the kind social tenants deserve and
rightly expect. I want to put on record our thanks to my noble
Friend, Lady Hayman of Ullock for bringing the need for this
amendment to the Government’s attention and for her efforts more
generally to improve the Bill in the other place.
It is our sincere hope that once the House has agreed this minor
but necessary change today, this important and urgently needed
piece of legislation can quickly receive Royal Assent so that we
can overhaul the regulation of social housing and better protect
the health, safety and wellbeing of social tenants across the
country.
Question put and agreed to.
