Let's be Honest Over the Housing Bill

12.00.00am GMT Fri 28th Nov 2003

Wednesday's Queens Speech announced a Housing Bill first promised by Labour in 1997. Early indications of the Bill's content however, suggest it will have virtually no effect in the City's student heartland - either for students or permanent residents.

Lib Dem Housing spokesman Cllr Andrew Tear (Harehills) said "The housing bill is a step in the right direction, but from what we've been told so far by the Government, it will fall short of fully protecting tenants from unscrupulous landlords. So far not enough has been included to deal with landlords who overcrowd their properties, and there's no mandatory tenancy deposit scheme to protect tenants from landlords who unfairly withhold their deposit."

Cllr David Morton, (Lib Dem, Headingley) said "I welcome the housing bill, but only as part of a response to our campaign for action on this issue, not as an end in itself. Unless alterations are made, the Bill will be nearly useless in tackling the issues surrounding Student Housing; only those HMOs (Houses of Multiple Occupancy) over three storeys high will be covered, which means the large majority of student houses in Leeds won't be protected as they're two storeys or less."

"Also the licensing of landlords proposed will probably only apply automatically in areas of low demand - but the problem with Headingley is that it's very high demand. The Council will have to make an application to use these powers in Headingley but has said it won't do so. Even if it did, the Government still has to agree, and if it's anything like the attempt to ban "to let" signs they'll back the landlords."

"I've been in contact with Liberal Democrat Members of Parliament on this issue for over a year now. We will take this fight up as the Bill goes through Parliament. It is of course an English problem, in Scotland and Wales all HMOs and all Landlords are licensed automatically"

Notes : 1.The Queen's Speech on 26th November included plans to introduce the Housing Bill. The draft form of the Bill published earlier this year includes powers for Councils to license landlords in areas of low demand, but not in areas of high demand such as Headingley.

2. A mandatory licensing scheme for Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs) will only apply to houses of 3 storey or more according to the draft housing bill. Most student houses in Leeds are 2 storeys.