Clause 56 - Part 4: application to government departments

Part of Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill – in a Public Bill Committee at 10:45 am on 30 January 2024.

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Photo of Lee Rowley Lee Rowley Minister of State (Minister for Housing) 10:45, 30 January 2024

Clause 56 deals with the issue of Crown land, and makes it clear that the measures in part 4 should apply in circumstances where estate management functions are carried out by or on behalf of Government Departments. We consider that there are no grounds to exclude homeowners who live on land owned by Government Departments where they pay a contribution. They have as much right to hold the estate manager accountable for the charges it spends. There may be a very small number of locations where land that could now or in the future be built on is owned by His Majesty or other parts of the Crown Estate. In such circumstances, the Crown will act by analogy—in other words, it will ensure homeowners on such estates have access to equivalent rights. Prior to Second Reading, the King and the Prince of Wales granted consent in writing. I commend the clause to the Committee.

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