The Housing and Planning Bill received its Second Reading in the
House of Lords on 26 January 2016.
Forty-eight peers spoke in a debate lasting over six hours, many
expressing concern about the proposals in relation to council
housing and the extension of the Right to Buy.
Several speakers complained that the impact of many parts of the
Bill, including 'pay to stay' and the sale of high value vacant
council homes, would depend on the detail of secondary legislation
and called for drafts of associated regulations to be published
before the Bill is considered in Committee. In response, the
Minister, Baroness Williams of Trafford, said she would do her best
to provide as much information as possible as the Bill
progresses.
ARCH, together with the NFA, has produced a briefing for
Peers highlighting our concerns about the proposals for social
housing set out in the Bill. ARCH Chair, Cllr Paul Ellis and ARCH
CEO, John Bibby met Lord Best with NFA Managing Director Eamon
McGoldrick in the House of Lords on 27 January to discuss our
concerns.
The Committee Stage for detailed line by line consideration of
the Bill by the Lords is scheduled to begin on 9 February, with
consideration of Part 4 of the Bill currently scheduled for debate
on 3 March 2016.