House of Lords concludes 2nd Reading of the Renters’ Rights Bill
Yesterday 4th February 2025 saw the 2nd Reading of the Renters’ Rights Bill. We knew it would be a significant and crucial milestone in the journey of the Bill.
Baroness Taylor of Stevenage Opened the proceedings by stating :”The private rental system needs to change. It currently provides the least affordable, poorest quality and most insecure housing of all tenures. The insecurity it engenders creates uncertainty in the lives of tenants and allows good landlords to be undercut by the minority of rogues and chancers. In short, the 11 million private renters and the 2.3 million landlords across England are being failed. The Renters’ Rights Bill brings forward the most significant changes to the sector for nearly 40 years. The Bill will strengthen the security of tenure for tenants; ensure that they are paying a fair rent; guarantee a minimum standard that they can expect from a property; provide new robust avenues to redress; and more.”
What followed was just over 4 hours of debate from Peers who presented questions put to them from parties with a vested interest in the PRS. Each Peer declared their interests, a great number, unsurprisingly, are landlords.
Post - Election Protocol
After a general election a new Parliament meets and a new parliamentary session begins. Members of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords are required to take an oath of allegiance to the Crown before they take their seats in Parliament.
The State Opening will take place on Wednesday 17th July following the election of the Speaker of the Commons and the swearing-in of Members of both Houses.
Renters Reform Bill moves to House of Lords
After months of waiting the Renters Reform Bill finally passed its third reading in the House of Commons yesterday, Coverage for the Bill has been widespread in the national press and trade press, some of which has been inaccurately reported.
Abolishing Section 21
This WILL happen. It is a manifesto commitment and the Housing Minister stressed that six months’ notice (a transitionary period) before ending section 21 tenancies to give the sector some time to implement these changes. There is a continued commitment to improving the county court system to adjust to the new possession processes.
In the House of Lords, there are more than 10 Lords a Leaping
If you have ever attended a tour of the Houses of Parliament, you will be well-informed about the history of the incredible building known as the Palace of Westminster. The palace is divided into two houses - the House of Commons where the elected MPs sit/meet and the House of Lords where, well, obviously the Lords reside.
The tours that are conducted by very knowledgable guides and sometimes, MPs, are educational and extremely informative, not only providing a snapshot of the political system and how the two Houses work, it also serves as an amazing history lesson.