Here We Go Again: Renters Reform Bill back in Parliament this week

The Renters Reform Bill returns to Parliament this week, with a First Reading of the measure in the House of Lords tomorrow.

The process thereafter mirrors the stages which the Bill took in the Commons - a more detailed Second Reading, a line-by-line analysis in the Committee Stage, and then the Third Reading. Providing there are no substantial clashes with the amendments already made in the Commons, the Bill then gets Royal Assent and becomes law.

The Bill was significantly altered during its passage through the Commons as a result of amendments from the government. 

The more substantial ones introduced changes including on the timing of the abolition of section 21 evictions; restrictions on re-letting and remarketing a property; and provisions with regard to student lettings. N

The Bill’s general aims remain the abolition of assured shorthold tenancies and section 21 evictions after court processes have been assessed to see if they can handle the workload; creating new grounds and amending existing grounds through which landlords can repossess their properties; amending the process for rent increases for certain tenancies and creating an Ombudsman for private tenants in England for the first time; and the creation of a private rented sector database and property portal where all landlords in England will have to register themselves and their properties.

In theory the Lords could overturn many of the provisions in the Bill but the National Residential Landlords Association predicts that this is unlikely.

Chris Norris, policy director at the NRLA, says: “Traditionally debate in the Lords is more lengthy and extensive than that in the Commons, and over the coming weeks we are likely to hear lot of noise about further amendments to the legislation.

“Lots of peers with an interest in housing will table amendments for debate which are highly unlikely to be adopted by the Government.

“However, the Bill will probably continue its progress through Parliament largely unchanged.”

Labour has said it will not oppose the Bill as it stands and the Conservative majority in the Commons has the right to reverse any changes made in the Lords that would alter the nature of the Bill.

Norris acknowledges that it’s difficult to predict exactly how long the remaining stages of the Bill will take to complete, but having taken a year to traverse the Commons it is possible that its passage through the Upper House could be complete by the autumn.

Norris concludes: “What has happened … represents a huge step forward for the Government, after fears they may run out of time to have the legislation passed ahead of a general election.

“We are confident the Bill as it stands delivers a balance for landlords and tenants and it is in the interests of both that the Bill passes smoothly through these final stages. The alternative is yet more uncertainty, and the prospect of another bill courtesy of the next government.”

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