King’s Speech presents Renters’ Rights Bill
The highly anticipated King’s Speech on 17th July under the Labour government did not contain any real surprises for the Private Rented except for the fact that what was the Renters Reform Bill kicked into the long grass when the General Election was announced, has now been renamed the Renters’ Rights Bill - emphasis on the first 2 words.
The King’s Speech set out the government's priorities and proposed legislative programme for the next Parliamentary session.
While acknowledging that responsible landlords had made a great contribution to the private rented sector, the government believes that there should be reform with regards to the rights of landlords and tenants.
The PRS & the Intentions of a Labour Government
Since 2019, many landlords have been concerned that Section 21 would be abolished, but the call for a General Election six weeks ago, put an end to the Renters Reform Bill, one of the fallen bills, progressing through the House of Lords and reaching a point where it would receive Royal Assent.
Now that a Labour Government is in place and Angela Rayner has been appointed Secretary of State for Levelling up, Housing and Communities, Labour will need to start the process again, and take a new Bill through the House of Commons and the House of Lords which will take time.