Concerning today's Conservative announcement relating to tougher measures for rogue landlords, the Conservative Group in Telford and Wrekin welcomed national measures to protect tenants, but urged Telford and Wrekin Council to reform their proposals so as not to unfairly punish good landlords by discriminating certain areas of the Borough.
Cllr Nicola Lowery stated “The private rented sector is an important part of our housing market, housing 4.3 million households in England. The quality of privately rented housing has improved rapidly over the past decade with 82% of private renters satisfied with their accommodation, and staying in their homes for an average of 4 years. The Government has made it very clear that they support good landlords who provide decent well maintained homes, and it is important we avoid unnecessary regulation which increases costs and red tape for landlords and also pushes up rents for tenants.
Unfortunately there are a small number of rogue landlords knowingly renting out unsafe and substandard properties, and it is important to crack down on these rogue landlords. It is important that local authorities make an informed decision on what is most appropriate for their communities to address problems in their area. However, it is important these measures are effective in addressing the problem, and that they do not punish the many good landlords who provide a high standard of accommodation to many residents within our Borough”.
Ministers made very clear that they expected this power to be used robustly as a way of clamping down on rogue landlords. In the House of Commons, Marcus Jones MP (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Communities and Local Government) stated: “it is necessary to clamp down on rogue landlords, so the civil penalty has been increased up to a maximum of £30,000. It is important to raise the level of civil penalty to £30,000, because a smaller fine may not be significant enough for landlords who flout the law to think seriously about their behaviour and provide good quality, private sector rented accommodation for their tenants”
Housing Minister Gavin Barwell confirmed the powers will give local authorities the tools to crack down on rogue landlords who attempt to avoid their responsibilities. This comes as part of the government’s plan set out in its housing white paper to create a bigger and better private rental sector that meets the needs of tenants and landlords alike, giving those who rent a fairer deal and establishing a good housing standard within privately rented accommodation.