Written evidence to be reported to the House
Housing and Regeneration Bill
12:00 pm
David Orr: Thank you, Chairman. I would just like to say a couple of things. First, we strongly welcome this Bill, particularly the part relating to the creation of the Homes and Communities Agency. We have been supportive of that concept and think that the objectives for and the powers of the new agency are sufficiently broadly drawn for it to be potentially a real generator for new investment. That is welcome. However, the one issue that we have with regard to the Homes and Communities Agency is, we argue, that where it owns land it should be required to dispose of it for the greatest public benefit, rather than for the best consideration. We think that that would send a strong message about the use of public sector land in meeting public policy objectives.
Secondly, with regard to the regulator, as I have already said, we think that it is important that the sector is properly regulated. We support the idea of domain-based regulation, that is, regulating the product—the social housing—without necessarily agreeing that the organisation should be regulated in its entirety. Indeed, the Bill as written makes it clear that private sector providers of social housing will be regulated only in respect of their provision of social housing. That is proper and should be the case right across the domain.
We are anxious that the Bill at present creates the potential for the primary ownership of decisions relating to the policy and practice of housing associations to rest with the regulator and, potentially, the Secretary of State, rather than with the boards of individual housing associations. We are concerned about that. I would be happy to discuss that further.