Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 17 March 2011
17 Mar 2011 · S3 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Private Rented Housing (Scotland) Bill
Sometimes it might seem to people as if we in this Parliament are navel gazing or talking only to ourselves, but nothing could be further from the truth. This bill is an example of that. We have consulted widely and have received a tremendous response from tenants and landlords—and even from groups of people who are neither. We might wonder why those latter groups would have an interest, but in a moment I will give members the example of the Croftfoot housing action group, none of whom is a tenant and none of whom is a landlord. Despite that, the action group has played its part in the development of the bill.
Far from navel gazing, we are today considering the final stage of a bill that will make a significant difference to the lives of real people. Let me give members just two examples. I will start with the Croftfoot housing action group—a force to be reckoned with in the south-east of Glasgow. It was formed because local people were fed up with rogue landlords who were not taking responsibility for the minority of antisocial tenants, for communal property or for the community from which they profit. When this bill is passed, Marilyn and Anne Marie from the action group, who are in the public gallery today, will be able to go back to Croftfoot and tell their community that things are changing—and changing for the better. Now when they come across landlords who refuse to take responsibility, who refuse to play their part in maintaining the property and who refuse to acknowledge their social responsibilities, they will know that action will be taken—action that can include the imposition of fines of up to £50,000 for registration offences. They will also finally be able to track those landlords down.
I welcome the fact that part of the fit-and-proper person test will be a consideration of how landlords deal with antisocial behaviour by their tenants. That represents the practical support that Croftfoot housing action group has been looking for. I am pleased that it will be delivered under an SNP Government with consensus across the Parliament.
The new legislation will protect some of the families I met in Govanhill who are new to Scotland—many of whom have been trafficked, which, of course, is a wider issue. Sometimes, 20 people are living in a two-bedroom flat. Their exploitation will be curtailed because the bill will make it easier for the authorities to find and stop rogue landlords whose only interest—whose raison d’être—is to make a profit at all costs.
Shared information is the way forward. For example, if a property is not registered, no housing benefit will be paid. Some local authorities already apply that rule. However, now that I feel reassured that we are doing what we can to protect tenants and local communities, I want to say something about the good landlords on the other side of the housing benefit argument—and I know that the minister has acknowledged that there are good landlords. I am talking about the landlords who register, who provide decent, safe and warm homes at a reasonable price, but who do not get their rent because housing benefit has been paid directly to the tenant who has not passed it on. I spoke to someone just last night to whom that had happened, and she was told by people at housing benefit that it was not their problem.
We must remember that not every landlord is a millionaire property developer. Often, someone rents out their home because they have had to move away for work, although they hope to return one day. It should be the housing benefit department’s problem. I realise that that will be another bill for another day, but it is worth mentioning. It is also worth saying again that we are talking about a minority of landlords.
I was approached recently by a woman who rents out a number of flats and seems to be fulfilling the functions of a social landlord in many ways. She has a real interest in mental health and, working with other agencies, has offered tenancies to people who are recovering from mental illness and addiction issues. Incidentally, she told me that she had only once had a problem with a tenant and she has dozens of properties. Of course, letting is a commercial transaction, but many landlords are also motivated by providing decent homes.
We all say it in passing, but I will say it again: most landlords will have no difficulty with the bill because they are decent people who provide a decent service and, indeed, have been significant in the bill’s development. To those landlords who are not decent, the bill says that everyone has the right to live in peace, comfort and safety and that, if they are putting that at risk, we are on to them. The powers that be will come to get them and no longer will they be able to stick up two fingers safe in the knowledge that nothing will happen, because it will.
The bill will make sure of that, as will people such as the fearsome—some would say scary—campaigners from Croftfoot housing action group. Given the amount of time that those campaigners have spent on the bill, they must know it inside out by now. They care about their community and I say to unscrupulous landlords that if they do not care about it too, they should steer clear.
Wherever such landlords go, they will find that tenants and communities throughout the country are protected by the bill. We must now ensure that those people know about it so that they can safeguard their homes and communities.
I commend the bill and look forward to its implementation.
16:11
Far from navel gazing, we are today considering the final stage of a bill that will make a significant difference to the lives of real people. Let me give members just two examples. I will start with the Croftfoot housing action group—a force to be reckoned with in the south-east of Glasgow. It was formed because local people were fed up with rogue landlords who were not taking responsibility for the minority of antisocial tenants, for communal property or for the community from which they profit. When this bill is passed, Marilyn and Anne Marie from the action group, who are in the public gallery today, will be able to go back to Croftfoot and tell their community that things are changing—and changing for the better. Now when they come across landlords who refuse to take responsibility, who refuse to play their part in maintaining the property and who refuse to acknowledge their social responsibilities, they will know that action will be taken—action that can include the imposition of fines of up to £50,000 for registration offences. They will also finally be able to track those landlords down.
I welcome the fact that part of the fit-and-proper person test will be a consideration of how landlords deal with antisocial behaviour by their tenants. That represents the practical support that Croftfoot housing action group has been looking for. I am pleased that it will be delivered under an SNP Government with consensus across the Parliament.
The new legislation will protect some of the families I met in Govanhill who are new to Scotland—many of whom have been trafficked, which, of course, is a wider issue. Sometimes, 20 people are living in a two-bedroom flat. Their exploitation will be curtailed because the bill will make it easier for the authorities to find and stop rogue landlords whose only interest—whose raison d’être—is to make a profit at all costs.
Shared information is the way forward. For example, if a property is not registered, no housing benefit will be paid. Some local authorities already apply that rule. However, now that I feel reassured that we are doing what we can to protect tenants and local communities, I want to say something about the good landlords on the other side of the housing benefit argument—and I know that the minister has acknowledged that there are good landlords. I am talking about the landlords who register, who provide decent, safe and warm homes at a reasonable price, but who do not get their rent because housing benefit has been paid directly to the tenant who has not passed it on. I spoke to someone just last night to whom that had happened, and she was told by people at housing benefit that it was not their problem.
We must remember that not every landlord is a millionaire property developer. Often, someone rents out their home because they have had to move away for work, although they hope to return one day. It should be the housing benefit department’s problem. I realise that that will be another bill for another day, but it is worth mentioning. It is also worth saying again that we are talking about a minority of landlords.
I was approached recently by a woman who rents out a number of flats and seems to be fulfilling the functions of a social landlord in many ways. She has a real interest in mental health and, working with other agencies, has offered tenancies to people who are recovering from mental illness and addiction issues. Incidentally, she told me that she had only once had a problem with a tenant and she has dozens of properties. Of course, letting is a commercial transaction, but many landlords are also motivated by providing decent homes.
We all say it in passing, but I will say it again: most landlords will have no difficulty with the bill because they are decent people who provide a decent service and, indeed, have been significant in the bill’s development. To those landlords who are not decent, the bill says that everyone has the right to live in peace, comfort and safety and that, if they are putting that at risk, we are on to them. The powers that be will come to get them and no longer will they be able to stick up two fingers safe in the knowledge that nothing will happen, because it will.
The bill will make sure of that, as will people such as the fearsome—some would say scary—campaigners from Croftfoot housing action group. Given the amount of time that those campaigners have spent on the bill, they must know it inside out by now. They care about their community and I say to unscrupulous landlords that if they do not care about it too, they should steer clear.
Wherever such landlords go, they will find that tenants and communities throughout the country are protected by the bill. We must now ensure that those people know about it so that they can safeguard their homes and communities.
I commend the bill and look forward to its implementation.
16:11
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Alasdair Morgan)
SNP
The next item of business is a debate on motion S3M-8128, in the name of Alex Neil, on the Private Rented Housing (Scotland) Bill.15:45
The Minister for Housing and Communities (Alex Neil)
SNP
I am pleased to open the debate and to move the motion in my name.I thank the Local Government and Communities Committee for its detailed consideration of th...
Tricia Marwick (Central Fife) (SNP)
SNP
Will the minister assure the chamber that the powers that the bill establishes will force local authorities to act when private landlords do not live up to t...
Alex Neil
SNP
I agree with Tricia Marwick that enforcement is crucial. The powers are now well in place and I believe that the local authorities have the tools to do the j...
Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab)
Lab
I am sure that I am not the only one who feels a sense of achievement when we reach stage 3 of a bill, and that is especially true when one has been particul...
Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con)
Con
The Conservatives support and will vote for the bill.Going through the process has been interesting and certain aspects of today’s procedures have been parti...
Jim Tolson (Dunfermline West) (LD)
LD
I thank my colleagues on the Local Government and Communities Committee, the committee clerks, the bill team and the minister for their hard work and dedicat...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
SNP
We now move to the open debate.16:07
Anne McLaughlin (Glasgow) (SNP)
SNP
Sometimes it might seem to people as if we in this Parliament are navel gazing or talking only to ourselves, but nothing could be further from the truth. Thi...
Patricia Ferguson (Glasgow Maryhill) (Lab)
Lab
Although the bill is one of the last that we shall consider in this session of the Parliament, its gestation has been fairly long. Most of its provisions wer...
John Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP)
SNP
It was a privilege to be a member of the committee that examined the bill. It was clear that not all local authorities have taken a vigorous approach to land...
Charlie Gordon (Glasgow Cathcart) (Lab)
Lab
I welcome the opportunity to make a brief contribution. In the stage 1 debate I spoke exclusively on the rogue landlord aspects of the bill, given the antiso...
Bob Doris (Glasgow) (SNP)
SNP
I start by saying something that I think that we all agree on: the private rented sector must become increasingly important in the provision of good-quality,...
Jim Tolson
LD
One principal element of the bill is the measures on the registration of private landlords. Alex Neil said that the bill is targeted at a minority of landlor...
Ted Brocklebank (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con)
Con
In winding up for the Conservatives today, I begin what will possibly be my final contribution in this place by saying how grateful I am for the kind words o...
Alex Neil
SNP
Can the member confirm that he is registered? Laughter.
Ted Brocklebank
Con
Absolutely, as the minister will discover if he checks the register of landlords.However, there have been problems. Pauline McNeill and Patricia Ferguson all...
Mary Mulligan
Lab
I offer my best wishes to Ted Brocklebank for all that he has done, particularly today. He said that his closing speech will probably be his last contributio...
The Presiding Officer (Alex Fergusson)
NPA
Given Patricia Ferguson’s earlier warning about what Alex Neil is capable of doing in an empty house, I am a little bit loth to let him loose on a fairly emp...
Alex Neil
SNP
I am delighted that Mary Mulligan is confident that I am going to be the minister moving the commencement order after the election.Earlier, when we were disc...
The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning (Michael Russell)
SNP
Indeed.
Alex Neil
SNP
This has been a consensual debate, with good contributions from throughout the chamber. It is appropriate that it has been consensual, because the issue that...
Bob Doris
SNP
I just want to add to the list the Home Owner and Debtor Protection (Scotland) Act 2010, under which all evictions for mortgage arrears must call in court, w...
Alex Neil
SNP
That is a good point from Mr Doris. I am always one to undersell our achievements. Laughter. The legislation is extremely important, but it is also importan...
Patricia Ferguson
Lab
Does the minister accept that the issue is not just the location of the judgment but the courts having an understanding of the effects that behaviour can hav...
Alex Neil
SNP
Absolutely. My view is that some kind of tribunal system may be more appropriate, certainly in some circumstances, than a case immediately going to the sheri...