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King Charles scrutinized the bill
The emergency bill to freeze rents was the first piece of Scottish legislation to be scrutinized by King Charles as it passed the first stage of scrutiny in the Scottish Parliament yesterday.
A motion to treat the Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Bill 2022 as an emergency law was passed Tuesday afternoon by a vote of 86 to 28.
In a Government Program (PfG) issued on 6 September 2022, the Scottish Government has announced that the social and private rental sector will be working to freeze rents and impose a moratorium on evictions until at least 31 March 2023. announced plans for an emergency bill covering
King Charles has been allowed to scrutinize the bill as the proposed rent freeze could affect tenants at Balmoral Estate in Aberdeenshire.
The rules were changed in Holyrood last year after examining the power of monarchs to influence British law, under what is known in Scotland as royal consent.
Guardian A memo from the Scottish government has been obtained which reveals that it is ‘almost certain’ that the bill has been changed to secure the King’s approval.
Criticism of the mechanism has led to new rules meaning that as soon as the Scottish government introduces a new bill, it must tell Parliament whether the monarch is allowed to see it first. .
The Cost of Living (Protection of Tenants) (Scotland) Bill announced on Monday is the first bill to be affected by the ruling and the first bill to be reviewed by the King.
Following yesterday’s vote, an expedited process will bring the bill to a parliamentary-wide committee today for a second phase of the process, before Thursday’s final vote.
The Housing Association has expressed concern about the impact of the rent freeze, as has CIH Scotland.
Callum Chomczuk, National Director of CIH Scotland, said: It is understandable that the Scottish government would like to do what they can to protect residents from rising costs of living. However, we are concerned that the policy will have serious unintended consequences that undermine the government’s ambitions for the housing sector and the housing outcomes of tenants.
“In the social rental sector, landlords are reporting the highest level of rent arrears since the introduction of Scotland’s Social Housing Charter, which is now just under £170m.
“For private landlords, rising interest rates have sold many private rental properties, driving landlords off the market and reducing the supply of available rental housing.
“The decision to introduce rent freezes and eviction protections will exacerbate these trends, allowing us to maintain and improve existing housing, serve tenants and, in the case of social landlords, create new affordable housing. These improvements build on stable rental income, along with plans to decarbonize the Scottish rental sector.
“With Parliament considering and likely to pass legislation this week, the Scottish government will ensure that these measures are temporary and as long as they are necessary.”
Timothy Douglas, PropertyMark’s head of policy and campaigns, appeared before the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee of the Scottish Parliament after the bill was issued.
Douglas told the Commission that PropertyMark member agents have already seen a decline in the number of homes available for rent due to rising costs imposed on landlords, and that they will see some form of short-term and long-term He warned that having rent controls in place would mean more landlords to sell, and fewer and lower-quality rental homes.
He said that MSP agents and their landlords have supported tenants through the hardships the pandemic has brought, and that more eviction notices are being received because landlords want to sell their property than as a result of tenants’ rent arrears. He pointed to statistics from one member agent showing that
Mr Douglas said: 69 sell. The landlord’s sale notices are up from his 33 in 2020. All roads lead to supply and sales are he one of the exemptions proposed by law.
“We need to recognize that rental agents and landlords have been working very hard throughout the pandemic to keep tenants and keep tenants at home. of rent increases, some landlords have either rescinded all rent increases or reduced outstanding amounts, and have held the increases for a few years in what they consider to be a reasonable response. is limited to 5%.
“As a whole, agents are looking more closely at tenant affordability and trying to find and accept the best possible solution rather than bartering rent or making offers to the highest bidder. is.
“We must remember the environment in which private landlords operate: higher costs to buy and rent through increased surcharges; higher interest rates; relative to rental income; Tax increases No longer able to offset interest expense on mortgages Change in wear allowances Removal of compulsory reasons for ownership Imminent energy efficiency costs All of these will affect future cost drivers for individual landlords is given.”
Scottish Land & Estates hoped the long-term effects of the emergency rent freeze and eviction moratorium would extend to the private rental sector for decades to come.
The Rural Business Organization, which represents some of Scotland’s largest rural housing suppliers, said the new law would exacerbate systemic problems already facing the sector.
Scottish Land & Estates Policy Director Stephen Young said:
“The government unveiled a broad bill on the private rental sector this afternoon, which it plans to rush through with minimal scrutiny by Thursday.
“It’s no longer about landlords’ or tenants’ rights, but about ill-advised reforms by the government that will shatter the ability of the rental sector to function properly and ultimately hurt the supply of housing.
“We are aware of the impact inflation is having on all segments of society and the difficulties it has created for particularly vulnerable groups. It has declined significantly over the decade, opting to pursue populist policies against landowners rather than fixing the systemic problems that exist.
“While this may increase the rights of current tenants in the short term, the reduction in the number of rental properties available will make it more difficult for future tenants to find suitable accommodation. and will ultimately have a negative impact on social mobility in Scotland.”
Mr Young added:
“Even if it were passed by Parliament, we would ask our legal advisers to look at it and provide their views on whether it complies with other legislation. , has already said that this is a complex issue and passing it through Congress in three days is likely to cause more problems than it solves.”
Colette Miller, a partner on the housing team at Harper MacLeod, said the bill did not provide the certainty social landlords might have hoped for.
She added: Effectiveness. That said, there is a sliver of hope that Scottish ministers could introduce a rent cap instead (instead of a ‘rent freeze’). Although the bill initially sets the rate of rent increases he allows at 0%, Scottish ministers could introduce regulations to increase the rate of permits under the bill.
“The bill also provides scope to extend the ‘rent cap’ beyond March 31, 2024 for an additional six months or one year, until September 30, 2023, and further to March 31, 2024. The Scottish minister said current economic projections suggest this is unlikely to apply if it is no longer needed or balanced in relation to the cost of living.
“This bill, along with moratorium exceptions for anti-social or criminal behavior and material rent arrears, may provide some reassurance to landlords regarding their ability to enforce eviction orders obtained before the law went into effect. but it is somewhat vague and needs further clarification.
“Time will tell how the rent cap and eviction moratorium work in practice, and whether the targets set by the bill provide a sufficient balance between the interests of landlords and tenants. But I don’t think landlords will be too relieved from the bill’s provisions.”
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