Clause 9 - Improvement notices relating to category 1 hazards: duty of authority to serve notice
Housing Bill
11:00 am
Mr Edward Davey (Kingston and Surbiton, Liberal Democrat)
We now move on to chapter 2—''Improvement notices, prohibition orders and hazard awareness notices''. We have reached the beginning of the enforcement regime for the standard rating system that we have just discussed. My amendments, which also stand in the name of my hon. Friend the Member for Ludlow, relate to how the occupant of the premises is affected by improvement notices. I should say at the start that I had not got to schedule 1 prior to tabling my amendment. Some of my concerns, which I have raised through the amendment, pertain to later parts of the Bill, which the Government have covered. However, this is still a useful opportunity to bring out some of the issues. I shall try to do so briefly, because I know that we will deal with them later.
I seek to raise three points in tabling these amendments. First, how would the process deal with an occupant or tenant who was impeding and obstructing the implementation of an improvement notice? Amendments tabled by the hon. Member for South Holland and The Deepings also deal with that. It is worth getting on the record the Minister's response about what process he envisages would be adopted where a tenant or occupant was obstructing and impeding the implementation of an improvement notice.
Secondly, amendments Nos. 223 and 224 related to how those tenants or occupants would be affected during the remedial works. How would they be informed—would they be given time to find alternative accommodation? Although I am sure that it is not in the Government's mind that tenants should suddenly be made homeless through this process, we must be sure that there is protection for them. I understand, after a closer reading of the Bill, that the Government have a process for doing that. Under paragraph 5(1) of schedule 1 there is a requirement for notices to be served on the occupants. I have not picked up on that point because I am more relaxed about it. However, I would like some clarification on how the improvement notice procedure would work to ensure that the tenant or occupant had a chance to find alternative accommodation. Again, I am already anticipating future debates, particularly on clause 12.
Thirdly, although clause 12 does not specify what would happen as clearly as it might, my impression is that it would, through the improvement notice procedure, allow the notice to be suspended until such time as the occupant or tenant had found alternative
accommodation, or some other event had happened. If I have understood the Bill incorrectly, perhaps the Minister would explain what protections there are for tenants and occupants who are in a property needing remedial action due to category 1 and category 2 hazards, and what will become of them during the process of remedial works.