Councils across the country will receive extra cash to crackdown on rogue landlords thanks to a new £2 million fund, Housing Minister Heather Wheeler MP has announced today (8 November 2018).

Whilst the majority of landlords provide decent homes for their tenants, a small minority continue to break the law and offer inadequate or unsafe housing – including to young families and others who are vulnerable to exploitation.

Councils will be able to bid for funding to step up enforcement action against irresponsible landlords who make tenants’ lives a misery and to develop and test innovative ways to clamp down on squalid accommodation.

Today’s news builds on government action to drive up standards in the private rented sector – ensuring millions of hard-working tenants get the homes they deserve and creating a housing market that works for everyone.

Housing Minister, Heather Wheeler, MP said:

Everyone deserves to live in a home that is safe and secure, and it is vital we crack down on the small minority of landlords who are not giving their tenants this security.

This funding will help further strengthen councils’ powers to tackle rogue landlords and ensure that poor-quality homes in their area are improved, making the housing market fairer for everyone.

Local authorities already have strong powers to require landlords to make necessary improvements to a property and can use a range of measures, including fines and banning orders, to tackle rogue landlords.

The new funding will be used to support a range of projects that councils have said will help them to ramp up action against criminal landlords – for example, to build relationships with external organisations such as the emergency services, legal services and local housing advocates.

Councils may also decide to support tenants to take action against poor standards through rent repayment orders, or develop digital solutions, helping officers to report back and make decisions quicker.

The money will also be used to encourage councils to share best practice of enforcement action and examples of innovative approaches that are self-sustaining and can be easily adapted to other parts of the country.

Further information

There are more than 4.5 million households in the private rented sector in England, with recent statistics showing that 82% of private renters are satisfied with their accommodation.

The fund will help councils take on the most common challenges that stand in the way of tackling poor standards in the private rented sector, including:

• the need for better information – on housing stock and on landlords and agents operating in their areas

• data sharing between authorities and agencies – identifying and bringing together different data sets to enable better enforcement targeting

• internal ‘ways of working’ – improving housing-specific legal expertise, in-house communication between teams, and tools and strategies to effectively implement policy

• innovative software – for enforcement officers to record their findings, gather evidence and streamline the enforcement process

The Queen has been graciously pleased to approve that the honour of Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath be conferred upon Jeremy John, The Lord Heywood of Whitehall, K.C.B., C.V.O.

Notes for Editors

On the Tuesday 30th October, Lord Heywood of Whitehall was invested as Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. Lord Heywood accepted this honour on behalf of the whole Civil Service which he was so proud to have led.

Sir Jeremy Heywood was appointed Cabinet Secretary following the announcement of Sir Gus O’Donnell’s retirement in December 2011. From September 2014 Jeremy also took on the title Head of the Civil Service. Prior to that, Sir Jeremy Heywood was Permanent Secretary to two successive Prime Ministers at 10 Downing Street. He also spent over three years as a Managing Director including as co-head of the UK Investment Banking Division at Morgan Stanley. Before joining Morgan Stanley, Sir Jeremy Heywood occupied a range of senior civil service roles, including as Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister (1999–2003).

Media enquiries should be directed to the 10 Downing Street press office.

The Environment Agency will increase the cost of boat registrations on its waterways from 2019 to help ensure a sustainable service for thousands of boat users.

The new charges for 2019-21 will be invested in waterways enjoyed by around 29,000 boat users, helping to meet the shortfall between the cost of running the service and the income currently generated from annual boat registrations.

Across the EA’s waterways, the majority of boats (98%) are used for private pleasure. For these users, annual boat registrations will increase by between £6 and £100 over two years depending on the size and type of boat, although specific costs vary by location. See a full breakdown of the increases here.

The EA is the second largest navigation authority in the UK and is responsible for more than 1,000 km of navigable waterways, which include the non-tidal River Thames, River Great Ouse, River Nene and Upper Medway Navigation. It is estimated the charge increases will bring in an additional £930,000 by 2021.

Mark Ormrod, National Manager for Navigation at the Environment Agency, said:

Our navigation service plays an important role in protecting our waterways and supports both recreation and business for thousands of people. We realise an increase in charges is never welcome news but it is essential to keep the levels of service and maintenance which boaters tell us is needed.

In addition, we are exploring new income streams to make our service even better and to
spread the cost among everybody who benefits from our waterways.

The Environment Agency carried out a consultation on the new charges across July-August 2018. A summary of the consultation responses can be found here