Welcome for government action to improve rented housing

Housing Minister John Healey has announced new powers for local councils to manage the unplanned spread of "Houses in Multiple Occupation" (HMO's) in towns and cities. The moves also aim to tackle pockets of unsafe and substandard accommodation run by bad landlords.

Mr Healey said that he will legislate so new rules will come into force by April this year. This change will mean that landlords will need to apply for planning permission in order to establish a new HMO with a change of use - e.g. when the use of a property is altered from a family home to a shared house. The Minister has also proposed giving a general consent for councils to introduce licensing schemes, without seeking permission from central Government, in hotspot areas where landlords do not maintain or manage their properties properly.

Celia Barlow MP said, "I am delighted at this announcement which will give councils more power to crack down on the worst landlords and to stop the spread of high concentrations of shared homes. It is important that the standard of rented accommodation is raised so that everyone has a decent and safe place to live."

Brighton Pavilion candidate Nancy Platts said:

"I have been campaigning for nearly two years on behalf of residents to tackle the problems caused by the concentration of HMOs (houses in multiple occupation) and over-development of homes in the Brighton Pavilion constituency. I am pleased that the Government has listened and taken the right action. You can read two of my previous letters in the Argus in 2008 and last year. Last year I met with John Healey and in 2008 I met his predecessor Caroline Flint to make the case of Brighton residents and students alike.

"The new powers are good news for residents and for students who want to live in the community. It will enable and empower Brighton and Hove City Council to crack down on bad landlords who offer low quality accommodation to students and ensure we have more homes available for families.

"It is exactly what I have been calling for and we now need the Council to rise to the challenge and use these powers to maintain mixed communities and keep a much-needed register of landlords so, if there are problems, tenants and residents have somewhere to turn."

Accompanying the announcement was confirmation that detailed work is now underway for a new National Landlords Register to help raise the standards of private rented accommodation further.