John Healey, Labour’s former Housing Minister, has introduced a ten minute rule motion in the Commons proposing the mandatory licensing of letting and managing agents.
The former housing minister between 2009 and 2010, Healey spoke against an amendment to theEnterpriseand Regulatory Reform Bill, paving the way for increased legislation – arguing it didn’t go far enough.
The ERR Bill would make all letting agents join an ombudsman scheme.
The ten minute rule bill, entitled “Letting agents (competition, choice and standards), reads:
“That leave may be given to bring in a Bill to establish a national mandatory licensing scheme for letting and managing agents, with established standards and redress for landlords and tenants, and prohibition of certain letting and management agent fees, to enable local authorities to administer and enforce the scheme, and to empower local authorities, either alone or in partnership, to trade as letting and managing agents.”
While the Bill is unlikely to make progress, Labour has insisted that if they were to come to power they would regulate private landlords and take action on letting agents’ fees.
In its Alternative Queen’s Speech the party said it would create a national register of landlords and give local councils power to ban bad landlords, as well as creating longer-term tenancies.
The Government itself has outlined plans in the Queen’s Speech for legislation including private landlords being required to check tenants’ immigration status and bigger fines for businesses using illegal foreign labour.