Renting Homes: The Final Report - Law Commission

Other control provisions relating to residential accommodation
1.64 The same point can be made. Landlords and occupiers can be given information
about the new management and empty dwelling orders provided for in the 2004
Act through the guidance booklet.
Tenancy deposit schemes
1.65 We think our recommendations significantly strengthen the potential value of the
provisions of the part of the Housing Act 2004 dealing with tenancy deposits, to
the advantage of both landlords and occupiers. We discuss this at Part 11.
Overcrowding
1.66 If the powers to redefine overcrowding 35 are implemented, these can be directly
communicated to landlords and occupiers through amendments to the terms of
the occupation contract.
Energy efficiency
1.67 The Housing Act 2004 requires the Secretary of State to take “reasonable steps”
to ensure that the general level of energy efficiency of residential accommodation
in England is increased by 20% by 2010. Clearly, information will be key to
delivering that target. The guidance booklet will be a direct source of information.
Should the Secretary of State wish to go further, he could, by simple legislative
amendment, use our scheme to introduce a new fundamental provision which
would make specific contractual provision on energy efficiency relating to rented
housing.
Grants to bodies other than registered social landlords
1.68 Our scheme makes clear that secure contracts can be entered into by any
landlord who so wishes. All secure contracts have identical statutory
underpinning. 36 It would be straightforward to adapt these new powers to ensure
that grants were made for investment in the provision of accommodation to be
rented under secure contracts.
IMPLEMENTATION IN WALES
1.69 In our 2003 Report, we considered whether, in the light of devolution, it would
have been appropriate to have made different provision for Wales. We concluded
that, in general, it was appropriate for the National Assembly for Wales to have
the same powers as the Secretary of State in England. In one important area,
however, we recommended that the National Assembly should have greater
powers. The draft Bill therefore gives the National Assembly a broad power to
amend the rules as to when a community landlord is required to use a secure
contract (clause 9). That was based on the devolution settlement set out in the
Government of Wales Act 1998.
35 Housing Act 2004, s 216.
36 Other than the right to transfer to another secure contract-holder which applies only to
secure contracts with community landlords.
24