Housing Bill
9:10 am

Mr Keith Hill (Minister of State (Housing and Planning), Office of the Deputy Prime Minister; Streatham, Labour)

I beg to move,

That—

(1) during proceedings on the Housing Bill the Standing Committee shall meet when the House is sitting on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9.10 a.m. and 2.30 p.m;

(2) 18 sittings in all shall be allotted to the consideration of the Bill by the Committee;

(3) the proceedings shall be taken in the order shown in the Table below and shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion at the time specified in the second column of the Table.

TABLE

Mr. Conway, I am sure that I speak for all members of the Committee when I say how much we are looking forward to debating the Housing Bill under your and Mr. Pike's expert chairmanship. I have not had the pleasure of serving under you in a Standing Committee before, but I have certainly with you on a Select Committee and I know that this Committee can rely on your robust and completely impartial governance of our affairs.

We shall spend substantial time discussing important subjects today and in the sittings ahead.

They are of great interest not only to members of the Committee, but to many outside the Room. Unfortunately, as a result of ministerial commitments, the Under-Secretary of State, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Pontefract and Castleford (Yvette Cooper), cannot be with us today, but she looks forward to working with everyone. I am aware that the Committee contains a great deal of expertise and experience, and I look forward constructive and well considered discussions.

Our debate about the Bill on Second Reading was of particularly high quality. Several hon. Members who have been appointed to the Committee raised many important points covering a wide range of issues. Now, we have the opportunity to debate the Bill in a more detailed and systematic way, which will put all its provisions clearly into context. As colleagues will know, the Bill was published in draft for public consultation and pre-legislative scrutiny. The Government found such an exercise extremely valuable and, thanks to that process, we believe that the Bill is now in better shape.

I remind the Committee that the main purpose of the Housing Bill is to create a fairer, better and more efficient housing market that is designed to protect the most vulnerable in respect of housing. It will fulfil two of the Government's manifesto commitments on licensing of houses in multiple occupation and the introduction of home information packs. It will contain much of the legislation that is needed to help to create sustainable communities, as announced by my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister in February last year. We believe that the Bill will make a real difference to people on the ground. Colleagues will be well aware of the various parts of the Bill, so I do not intend to explain them in detail.

The resolution of the Programming Sub-Committee sets the times and dates for our discussions about the Housing Bill. We propose to meet twice daily on Tuesdays and Thursdays until Tuesday 24 February. It will be a relief to the hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr. Davey), who feared that we proposed to sit through the February recess and devote seven sittings to debating part 7, that we shall not, of course, be sitting on Tuesday 17 February and Thursday 19 February, which fall during the February recess.

The order of consideration of the Bill broadly follows the order of clauses in the Bill, but there are some exceptions. I shall be happy to explain that in detail if any member of the Committee is concerned about it. We propose that schedules are considered alongside the clause that introduces them. The provisions in a schedule might relate to a particular clause, and it therefore seems appropriate to consider them together. We also think—and the Programming Sub-Committee agreed—that it is logical to take any new clauses or schedules relating to a particular part of the Bill immediately after consideration of the provisions in that part.

Mr. John Hayes (South Holland and The Deepings) (Con): There is no need to elaborate at length on what the Minister said, but it would be remiss not to

welcome you to the Chair, Mr. Conway. As ever, it will be a delight to serve under your erudite and generous chairmanship as we consider an important measure.

There are a number of implications to the measure, and all Committee members—as evidenced by the quality of the debate on Second Reading, to which the Minister referred—share a determination to ensure that this important legislation is as effective and fair as possible. Over the next few weeks, as we are locked not in combat but in healthy scrutiny of the Bill, we will seek to do just that.

I have nothing further to say about the specific nature of the programme motion, or about the progress that we will all endeavour to ensure is made, except to note that as we progress a number of matters that are not in the Bill will doubtless emerge; they will be brought to the Committee's attention in the form of new clauses. As hon. Members will remember, that issue was raised on Second Reading and it was felt by some that aspects of the Bill touched on other matters that perhaps should have been included, but are not. I hope that we will have ample opportunity under your stewardship, Mr. Conway, and that of Mr. Pike, to explore those issues as we progress and as they relate to particular aspects of the Bill, on the basis suggested in the Programming Sub-Committee. No doubt, such new clauses will be tabled in due course and we can enjoy a broad, efficient and effective debate on them, albeit one that is constrained by the proper consideration of such matters.

Mr. Edward Davey (Kingston and Surbiton) (LD): I welcome you to the Chair, Mr. Conway. I recall serving under your chairmanship on various Finance Bills and you know how joyous it is to serve on the Standing Committee on a Finance Bill when the Government are keen to agree to Opposition amendments. Hopefully, the Government will continue to be keen to consider what the Opposition have to say about this Bill, particularly given that during many of the discussions prior to this sitting there was an air of constructive criticism and a willingness to see whether we could improve the legislation.

Many of us agree with much of the Bill. The Minister will be aware that both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have concerns about part 5, but that that aside, there is a lot of common ground and a willingness to ensure that the Bill is implemented effectively and that the right balance is struck. Also, the draft Bill procedure has shown the Government's ability to listen to the Select Committee and the people who gave evidence to it, and to improve legislation before it reaches Standing Committee. That means that there is greater agreement with, and understanding of, the Government's intentions.

I put on record our thanks to the Minister for Housing and Planning for his briefing. I understand that he extended the same courtesy to Conservative Front Benchers. The chance to talk to him and to civil servants in the initial stages improved our understanding of the Government's position. I think

that these proceedings will be constructive, not least because of the way in which the hon. Member for Gillingham (Paul Clark) goes about his work as a Whip.

There will probably be a lot of passion in the Committee, not least during this morning's sittings, because week in, week out in our advice surgeries housing is the one issue that people raise that we sometimes feel unable to deal with. That is especially true of London Members, but those with constituencies outside the capital probably encounter the same thing. We feel frustrated about legislative constraints and we want more action to be taken. The Bill will, I hope, enable progress to be made. People will be pleased about that, but they will also want to persuade the Government about issues such as overcrowding, as we will hear later today.

The programme motion was improved by the Programming Sub-Committee, and I pay tribute to the hon. Member for South Holland and The Deepings (Mr. Hayes) for his suggestion that we start a little later. I think that the 9.10 am start came as a result of that, which pleases one who commutes from Surbiton every day on South West Trains. The Minister for Housing and Planning rightly pointed out that I was under a misapprehension about the recess. I was volunteering to come in, possibly by myself, for extra sittings on part 7. I am pleased to say that my diary has already been rearranged.

I am glad that the motion allows for a lot of debate on new clauses. It emerged on Second Reading, and will continue to do so as the Bill progresses and understanding increases, that the Government may find that there is room to add new elements that strengthen the Bill and that ensure higher standards in the private rented sector and in the housing stock overall. So I welcome the motion, Mr. Conway, and I look forward to constructive procedures.

Mr. Conway, I am sure that I speak for all members of the Committee when I say how much we are looking forward to debating the Housing Bill under your and Mr. Pike's expert chairmanship. I have not had the pleasure of serving under you in a Standing Committee before, but I have certainly with you on a Select Committee and I know that this Committee can rely on your robust and completely impartial governance of our affairs.

We shall spend substantial time discussing important subjects today and in the sittings ahead.

They are of great interest not only to members of the Committee, but to many outside the Room. Unfortunately, as a result of ministerial commitments, the Under-Secretary of State, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Pontefract and Castleford (Yvette Cooper), cannot be with us today, but she looks forward to working with everyone. I am aware that the Committee contains a great deal of expertise and experience, and I look forward constructive and well considered discussions.

Our debate about the Bill on Second Reading was of particularly high quality. Several hon. Members who have been appointed to the Committee raised many important points covering a wide range of issues. Now, we have the opportunity to debate the Bill in a more detailed and systematic way, which will put all its provisions clearly into context. As colleagues will know, the Bill was published in draft for public consultation and pre-legislative scrutiny. The Government found such an exercise extremely valuable and, thanks to that process, we believe that the Bill is now in better shape.

I remind the Committee that the main purpose of the Housing Bill is to create a fairer, better and more efficient housing market that is designed to protect the most vulnerable in respect of housing. It will fulfil two of the Government's manifesto commitments on licensing of houses in multiple occupation and the introduction of home information packs. It will contain much of the legislation that is needed to help to create sustainable communities, as announced by my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister in February last year. We believe that the Bill will make a real difference to people on the ground. Colleagues will be well aware of the various parts of the Bill, so I do not intend to explain them in detail.

The resolution of the Programming Sub-Committee sets the times and dates for our discussions about the Housing Bill. We propose to meet twice daily on Tuesdays and Thursdays until Tuesday 24 February. It will be a relief to the hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr. Davey), who feared that we proposed to sit through the February recess and devote seven sittings to debating part 7, that we shall not, of course, be sitting on Tuesday 17 February and Thursday 19 February, which fall during the February recess.

The order of consideration of the Bill broadly follows the order of clauses in the Bill, but there are some exceptions. I shall be happy to explain that in detail if any member of the Committee is concerned about it. We propose that schedules are considered alongside the clause that introduces them. The provisions in a schedule might relate to a particular clause, and it therefore seems appropriate to consider them together. We also think—and the Programming Sub-Committee agreed—that it is logical to take any new clauses or schedules relating to a particular part of the Bill immediately after consideration of the provisions in that part.

See this speech in context