Clause 57 - Licences: general requirements and duration
Housing Bill
Public Bill Committees, 27 January 2004, 4:30 pm
Mr Robert Syms (Poole, Conservative)
Where a current voluntary scheme is rolled into the compulsory scheme, will all the properties in the voluntary scheme start off on day one on the same terms, or will their licences under the voluntary scheme run for their full period?
In addition, if someone has a licence of five years but a local authority has 1,000 properties to inspect in a very short time, will it be possible for the property to be inspected after four and a half years but for the licence to be issued to follow on from the end of the five-year period? If we are talking about heavy fees—perhaps £10,000 or £15,000—and the owners of a property might be a little bit concerned if they are being short-changed on their five years.