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House of Lords Official Report Vol. 710 Monday No. 77 18 May 2009 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) HOUSE OF LORDS OFFICIAL REPORT ORDER OF BUSINESS Questions Housing: Repossession Immigration: Sangatte Female Genital Mutilation Legal Aid Information Committee Motion to Publish Evidence Terrorism Act 2000 (Code of Practice for Examining Officers) (Revision) Order 2009 Transfer of Tribunal Functions (Lands Tribunal and Miscellaneous Amendments) Order 2009 Freedom of Information (Time for Compliance with Request) Regulations 2009 Housing (Replacement of Terminated Tenancies) (Successor Landlords) (England) Order 2009 Motions to Approve Law Commission Bill [HL] Order of Commitment Discharged Coroners and Justice Bill Second Reading Grand Committee Business Rate Supplements Bill Committee (2nd Day) Written Statements Written Answers For column numbers see back page £3·50 Lords wishing to be supplied with these Daily Reports should give notice to this effect to the Printed Paper Office. The bound volumes also will be sent to those Peers who similarly notify their wish to receive them. No proofs of Daily Reports are provided. Corrections for the bound volume which Lords wish to suggest to the report of their speeches should be clearly indicated in a copy of the Daily Report, which, with the column numbers concerned shown on the front cover, should be sent to the Editor of Debates, House of Lords, within 14 days of the date of the Daily Report. This issue of the Official Report is also available on the Internet at www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200809/ldhansrd/index/090518.html PRICES AND SUBSCRIPTION RATES DAILY PARTS Single copies: Commons, £5; Lords £3·50 Annual subscriptions: Commons, £865; Lords £525 WEEKLY HANSARD Single copies: Commons, £12; Lords £6 Annual subscriptions: Commons, £440; Lords £255 Index—Single copies: Commons, £6·80—published every three weeks Annual subscriptions: Commons, £125; Lords, £65. LORDS CUMULATIVE INDEX obtainable on standing order only. Details available on request. BOUND VOLUMES OF DEBATES are issued periodically during the session. Single copies: Commons, £105; Lords, £40. Standing orders will be accepted. THE INDEX to each Bound Volume of House of Commons Debates is published separately at £9·00 and can be supplied to standing order. WEEKLY INFORMATION BULLETIN, compiled by the House of Commons, gives details of past and forthcoming business, the work of Committees and general information on legislation, etc. Single copies: £1·50. Annual subscription: £53·50. All prices are inclusive of postage. © Parliamentary Copyright House of Lords 2009, this publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Parliamentary Click-Use Licence, available online through the Office of Public Sector Information website at www.opsi.gov.uk/click-use/ 1193 Housing: Repossession[18 MAY 2009] Housing: Repossession 1194 which allows landlords to evict people who complain? House of Lords While that provision remains, it is difficult for a complaints and redress scheme to work properly, as the landlord Monday, 18 May 2009. can evict the tenant who complains. Is the Minister aware that in America, where the private rented sector 2.30 pm is much further advanced, that problem has been overcome? Prayers—read by the Lord Bishop of Ely. Baroness Andrews: My Lords, I am very interested Housing: Repossession to hear what the noble Lord has said about American Question practice; I did not know that. The context for this is the Rugg review, which last week published its report 2.36 pm on the private rented sector. It recommended among other things the idea of a lighter-touch national register Asked By Baroness Scott of Needham Market of every private landlord in the country. That would To ask Her Majesty’s Government what protection increase protection both for vulnerable tenants and for is available to tenants of private landlords subject good landlords, which is the solution that we are to repossession proceedings. looking for. When the Rugg review looked at this problem, it found not that the problem is widespread but that the real issue is how to raise standards in the The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, private sector. If properties were properly maintained, Department for Communities and Local Government the problem of retaliatory eviction would not arise. (Baroness Andrews): My Lords, I share the concern of We will look at this in that much broader context. the noble Baroness about the problem of tenants who are evicted at very short notice when, through no fault of their own, their landlord is repossessed. We announced Lord Skelmersdale: My Lords, as the Minister has on 13 May that we intend to legislate to provide said, a lot, if not most, of the problem applies to additional protection for tenants caught in this situation sub-lessees, many of whom will be on housing benefit. and we will shortly be consulting on the details. In these cases, will their housing benefit be affected, or will they have to start again with a new claim? Baroness Scott of Needham Market: My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness for that reply. Is she Baroness Andrews: My Lords, I am not properly aware of stories from Citizens Advice of individuals briefed on that, but my sense is that their housing coming out of hospital to find that the locks have been benefit would be protected. This would happen through changed on their property because it has been repossessed? no fault of their own. If the noble Lord will forgive Will the changes to which she refers include giving me, I will write to him. courts the power to defer the possession order to give time, particularly for vulnerable tenants, to make Baroness Hamwee: My Lords, I appreciate that the alternative arrangements? noble Baroness cannot commit to the date of legislation, but she will appreciate that those who are concerned Baroness Andrews: My Lords, I have certainly seen about the problem are also concerned about having to the Shelter report, which has many of the same sort of wait until the Queen’s Speech in the autumn and then stories about people who return home to find that the for new legislation. Will the Government see whether locks have been changed or who are given very little there is current legislation on to which they can add notice to find alternative accommodation. We think some of these provisions? In the mean time, will they that this involves a small minority—about 2,000 people— talk to the relevant parties about the pre-action protocol but that does not make it any less unjust. The problem and steps that the courts may or may not take? is that the landlord has not informed the lender that they have sublet their property and so the tenants have Baroness Andrews: My Lords, I cannot pre-empt no tenancy rights. We plan to legislate at the earliest any legislative vehicle, for the reasons that the noble opportunity for the tenants affected, so that we can Baroness gave, but we will certainly find the first ensure that all tenants in this situation get at least two relevant legislation that we can. We have to consult months’ notice if they need to leave their home for any properly because this is a complicated situation, as she reason. That would put them on the same footing as will know, given her experience. Tenancy agreements other tenants. We are now discussing with lenders and are very complicated indeed. We have to work—and the debt and housing advice providers how to change we are working—closely with lenders, who have been the law to best effect. very supportive on this, as have the lobby groups. We need to improve the current practices when an Lord Best: My Lords, I declare my interest as unauthorised tenant is found in the property. We are chairman of the Property Ombudsman Council, which working to mitigate the impact on tenants whose deals with complaints against estate agents and the landlords are in arrears. For example, in April we managing agents and letting agents of private landlords. extended the period of the possession order to seven I am much encouraged by the Minister’s response, but weeks, which will help. We will try to get as much are the Government addressing the parallel issue of information as we can to tenants who may be vulnerable, evictions under Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988, but the difficulty is in finding them. 1195 Housing: Repossession[LORDS] Immigration: Sangatte 1196 Baroness Gardner of Parkes: My Lords, is the Minister and France have worked together to create one of the aware that there used to be a parallel situation with most secure border crossings in the world at Calais. utilities, such as gas and electricity? People would find This is achieved through the rigorous searching and the bailiffs coming because the man who owned the screening of lorries, exchanging information on the whole block had not paid his bills or done anything changing nature of the threat and by sharing high about them. This was resolved with the utilities by levels of border-control expertise. Last year, we detected agreeing a code of conduct with them, so that they and prevented more than 28,000 individual attempts would check whether there were tenants in a property; to cross the channel illegally. if there were, the utilities would notify the tenants and, in some cases, accept payment—even the landlord’s Lord Naseby: My Lords, while those figures payment—directly from the tenant. Perhaps something undoubtedly sound very impressive, why are so many of that type could be brought in. people under 18 getting into the United Kingdom? Apparently, we do not deport them with the adults Baroness Andrews: My Lords, I am learning a lot in who also get in.
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