Clause 44 - Licensing of HMOs to which this Part applies
Housing Bill
2:30 pm
Ms Geraldine Smith (Morecambe and Lunesdale, Labour)
I have some sympathy with the comments made by the hon. Members for Poole (Mr. Syms) and for Ludlow (Matthew Green). I have some concerns myself; I would like the Government to license all HMOs, but I understand why they have not. We should congratulate the Government on making a good start with the HMO registration scheme, which will be helpful in my constituency.
I seek clarification from the Minister on one or two points. Why do the Government not feel that it is necessary to license all HMOs? I appreciate that they have given councils the discretion to do so in areas where there may be a problem. There certainly is a problem in parts of my constituency, such as the west end of Morecambe, where it might be appropriate to license all HMOs.
The criteria of three or more storeys and five occupants puzzle me. Eight people could be living in appalling conditions in a two-storey HMO that would not have to be licensed. What difference does an extra storey make? I am also concerned that if there are basement flats, they will not be considered to be a storey. Some of the most appalling conditions that I have come across in my constituency were in basement flats with problems of damp, flooding and so on. A basement should count as a storey. In Morecambe, there are many two-storey houses with garret flats. Are they to be considered three-storey or two-storey houses? I would like clarification on that. The vast majority of HMOs in my constituency are built in that fashion.
Once again, I congratulate the Government, and the Minister in particular, although I did not think that he had a good record on accommodation when he was deputy Chief Whip—