The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill Committee today calls for
evidence from those with relevant expertise and experience or a
special interest in the Bill, which is currently passing through
Parliament.
A Public Bill Committee has been appointed to scrutinise the Bill
line by line, and would welcome written evidence submissions to
aid this scrutiny.
A Public Bill Committee
set up to examine the details of a particular Bill. All Bills,
other than Money Bills, are automatically sent in a Public Bill
Committee following their second reading (unless they are
committed to a Committee of the whole House). The composition of
the committee must match the size of the parties in the House.
The first sitting of the Public Bill Committee is expected to be
on Tuesday 16 January and the Committee is scheduled to report by
Thursday 1 February. Interested parties are encouraged to submit
evidence as soon as possible to ensure it is considered.
Aims of the Bill
The Bill’s main provisions would:
- make it cheaper and easier for leaseholders in houses and
flats to extend their lease and buy the freehold.
- increase the standard lease extension term to 990 years, with
ground rent reduced to a peppercorn (zero financial value), upon
payment of a premium.
- change the qualifying criteria to give more leaseholders the
right to extend their lease, buy their freehold and take over
management of their building.
- improve the transparency of service charges and ensure
leaseholders receive key information on a regular basis.
- give leaseholders a new right to request information about
service charges and the management of their building.
- improve the transparency of administration charges and
buildings insurance commissions.
- ensure leaseholders are not subject to any unjustified legal
costs and can claim their own legal costs from their freeholder.
- give freehold homeowners who pay charges for the maintenance
of communal areas and facilities on a private or mixed-tenure
residential estate the right to challenge the reasonableness of
charges and the standard of services provided.
- improve the transparency of estate charges and ensure
freehold homeowners receive key information on a regular basis.
- ensure a rentcharge owner is not able to take possession or
grant a lease on a freehold property where the rentcharge remains
unpaid for a short period of time.
Notes to editors
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform
Bill was introduced to the House of Commons on 27
November 2023. The Bill’s second
reading was held on 11 December 2023.
Oral evidence sessions for this Bill are expected to be held on
16 and 18 January.
Guidance on submitting written evidence
- The Public Bill Committee is now able to receive written
evidence. The sooner you send in your submission, the more
time the Committee will have to take it into consideration and
possibly reflect it in an amendment. The order in which
amendments are taken in Committee will be available in due course
under Selection of Amendments on the
Bill documents pages. Once the Committee has dealt with
an amendment it will not revisit it.
- The first sitting of the Public Bill Committee is expected to
be on Tuesday 5 December and the Committee is scheduled to report
by Thursday 14 December. However, please note that when the
Committee concludes its consideration of the Bill it is no longer
able to receive written evidence and it can conclude earlier than
the expected deadline of 5.00pm on Thursday 14 December. You
are strongly advised to submit your written evidence as soon as
possible.
- Your submission should be emailed to scrutiny@parliament.uk
- Further guidance on submitting written evidence can be
found here.
