The Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has apologised to the PM for her “inadvertent error” in not paying for a licence to rent her hideous four-bed house in Dulwich when she moved into the more cramped but strategic flat in Downing Street; right next to the PM. “Regrettably”, she was unaware of the requirement, she said. Sir Keir Starmer professed himself content with the apology, so “further investigation is not necessary”.
So that’s all right then? Well, no. After the Angela Rayner scandal, whereby the Deputy PM was obliged to resign for tax irregularities to do with her primary residence in Hove (and I still can’t get my head round the notion that Hove is her primary residence when it’s hundreds of miles from her constituency), you’d have thought that ministers would be hyper-vigilant when it comes to matters to do with property and taxation. Back in August, there was that unfortunate business regarding Rushanara Ali, the Labour homelessness minister, who resigned after controversy surrounding the eviction of tenants from her rental property to sell it, and then re-listing it at a significantly higher rent.
There is a hyper-willingness to legislate for other people in respect of property; a notable reluctance to conceive that this might apply to them
The Chancellor’s failure to enquire into ways her own government’s legislation (allowing councils to impose licencing requirements on renters without asking government first) applied to herself, is symptomatic of a problem among ministers. That is, a hyper-willingness to legislate for other people in respect of property; a notable reluctance to conceive that this might apply to them.
The renters’ rights agenda in government is good in parts. The parts where it’s not good are to do with piling requirements on people letting property that make some landlords think that the whole game isn’t worth it. Southwark Council said the licences were brought in to ‘improve safety, security and quality for people living in private rented homes’. They cost £930 and landlords must submit documents proving their property is fit for renting out, including gas, electrical and fire safety certificates, floor plans and tenancy agreements.” Rachel Reeves is getting one, sharpish, and is blaming her lettings agency for not having brought the matter to her attention (we haven’t heard.) Fine; she’s busy. She’s running the economy, and not very well either.
Also read: How a nightmare tenant turned my lovely flat into a cannabis factory
But do you know anyone, except for institutional, full-time landlords, who isn’t busy, who wouldn’t be pushed to find the time and money to apply for one of these things, with all the certificates and form filling they entail? For me it would probably be a deal breaker; the point at which you decide that actually, you’d be better off selling a home or not renting at all.
Some of the requirements for a certificate are fair enough – though heaven knows how my own rented top-floor flat passed muster for fire safety when my only escape route in a fire is to hang out of the window and call for help – and others are useful when it comes to anti-social behaviour by tenants. But the point is that they’re expensive, probably off-puttingly expensive, if you’re an old fashioned landlady renting out a spare room. And that’s not to take into account other government regulations to do with energy efficiency.
All this red tape forcing some smaller landlords out of business
It’s all fine if the individual letting a home is an institution which has staff to deal with these things; less so, if you’re a private individual trying to raise some money from your home. All this red tape, alongside other requirements to be brought in under the Renters’ Rights Bill, is forcing some smaller landlords out of business. And who suffers? Not just them, but anyone looking for somewhere to live in London.
I saw some rough sleepers in Mayfair last night and a woman who used to work with them told me that a few of them chose to sleep on the pavements because they worked locally and couldn’t afford the cost of commuting.
This week we saw yet more legislation to do with landlords’ obligations to deal with mould. Actually, my flat is riddled with mould but I see it as my responsibility to deal with it… and there are ways to do so.
That’s where it’s actually useful that government ministers slip up. It shows that the system may be overly bureaucratic and demanding. But that’s not the lesson Rachel Reeves will take from this. She will probably escape the potential £30,000 fine for non-compliance with the licence requirement in Southwark, but will other offenders? Will they have the same leniency extended to them? I doubt it, don’t you?
The Tories are baying for Rachel Reeves’ blood. They won’t get it. But the damage has been done anyway. One rule for us, another for them. Doesn’t look good, that.
Melanie McDonagh is a columnist for The Standard
