Michael Gove’s Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities hit back overnight at critics of the government’s Renters Reform Bill.

The Bill – in heavily amended form – was passed in the Commons yesterday evening. It retains the scrapping of Section 21 powers but now includes an indefinite timetable: the abolition won’t happen until a review has taken place of the courts system’s ability to cope with evictions through other means.

In addition there will now be a review of local council licensing schemes to ensure they do not overlap with the Bill’s proposed portal; and there will be a six month period for each tenancy before a renter can end the tenancy.
The Bill’s original measures – to introduce a decent home standard, establish a new ombudsman and provide protections for families in receipt of benefits from discrimination – continue in the amended version that now goes to the House of Lords.

But overnight an unusual statement from Gove’s department came out, specifying coverage in the Sun, Guardian, the DailyTelegraph and the BBC.

The statement says: “Some coverage today has inaccurately suggested we are watering down our commitments on abolishing section 21 notices – or no-fault evictions. Abolishing section 21 notices is a manifesto commitment and we have been very clear that we will end these no-fault evictions as soon as possible.

“We have always said that we will give six months’ notice before ending section 21 tenancies to give the sector some time to implement these changes. And we have now today committed to making sure the county court system time had to adjust to the new possession processes, with an assessment of the county courts to ensure they are ready for these changes.”

The statement went on to say that the Bill delivers the biggest changes to the rental sector in 30 years and will:

– stop landlords having blanket bans on renting to those with children or who are on benefits;

– apply and enforce the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time, so that everyone has a safe and decent home;

– for the first time give tenants a legal right to ask to have their much-loved pets in their home;

– give landlords strengthened grounds for possession if a tenant is in rent arrears or they want to sell their property – and the statement on this subject says “we are investing in the county courts so that landlords can benefit from a modern, efficient possession system”;

– mean landlords are able to act more quickly to evict tenants who make others’ lives miserable through anti-social behaviour; and

– help resolve disputes between landlords and tenants more quickly, with a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman.

A DLUHC spokesperson says: “Our commitment to scrap section 21 no-fault evictions as soon as possible is unchanged. We have always said we will give six months notice before ending section 21 for all new tenancies. In addition, we have committed to ensuring improvements in the courts service are rapidly implemented before extending this abolition to all existing tenancies.”

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