Ms Karen Buck (Regent's Park & Kensington North, Labour)

I beg to move amendment No. 171, in

clause 1, page 1, line 9, leave out 'and'.

Mr Derek Conway (Old Bexley & Sidcup, Conservative)

With this it will be convenient to discuss the following:

Amendment No. 214, in

clause 1, page 1, line 11, at end insert—

', and

(c) for the introduction of minimum physical standards for HMOs'.

Amendment No. 172, in

clause 1, page 1, line 11, at end insert

', and

(c) for a revision of the overcrowding standards in respect of such premises.'.

Amendment No. 215, in

clause 1, page 3, line 3, at end insert—

'(9) The appropriate national authority will by regulations:

(a) introduce minimum physical standards for HMOs; and

(b) introduce measures to regulate and enforce such standards'.

New clause 17—Overcrowding standards—

'(1) For section 324 of the Housing Act 1985 (in this Act referred to as ''the 1985 Act'') there is substituted

''324 Definition of overcrowding

A dwelling is overcrowded for the purposes of this Part when the number of persons sleeping in the dwelling is such as to contravene—

(a) the standard specified in section 325 ('the bedroom standard'), or

(b) the standard specified in section 326 ('the space standard'),''.

(2) For section 325 of the 1985 Act there is substituted—

''325 The bedroom standard

(1) The bedroom standard is contravened when the number of bedrooms available to the occupiers of a dwelling is less than the number of bedrooms allocated to them in aggregate in accordance with the formula set out below in subsection (4).

(2) No account shall be taken for the purposes of the bedroom standard of a room having a floor area of less than 50 square feet.

(3) A room is available as a bedroom if it is of a type normally used in the locality as a bedroom.

(4) For the purposes of the bedroom standard a separate bedroom shall be allocated to the following persons—

(a) a person living together with another as husband and wife (whether that other person is of the same sex or the opposite sex);

(b) a person aged 21 years or more;

(c) two persons of the same sex aged 10 years to 20 years;

(d) two persons (whether of the same sex or not) aged less than 10 years;

(e) two persons of the same sex where one person is aged between 10 years and 20 years and the other is aged less than 10 years;

(f) any person aged under 21 years in any case where he or she cannot be paired with another occupier of the dwelling so as to fall within (c), (d) or (e) above.''

(3) For section 326 of the 1985 Act there is substituted—

''326 The space standard

(1) The space standard is contravened when the number of persons sleeping in a dwelling is in excess of the permitted number, having regard to the floor area of the rooms of the dwelling available as bedrooms.

(2) For this purpose—

(a) a child under the aged of five shall be reckoned as half a unit and a person aged five or over shall be reckoned as one unit, and

(b) a room is available as a bedroom if it is of a type normally used in the locality as a bedroom.

(3) The permitted number of persons in relation to a dwelling is the aggregate for all such rooms in the dwelling of the numbers specified in column 2 of the Table set out below in relation to each room of the floor area specified in column 1; and no account shall be taken for the purposes of the space standard of a room having a floor area of less than 50 square feet.