RETALIATORY EVICTION BY PRIVATE SECTOR LANDLORDS

That this House notes the contents of The Tenant's Dilemma, a Citizens Advice Bureau report on the issue of retaliatory eviction in the private rented sector; expresses concern that some landlords are using the provisions of section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 to avoid meeting their responsibility to carry out repairs requested by tenants and are instead serving them with eviction notices when they make such a request; further notes that environmental health and tenancy relations professionals report that many tenants are deterred from accepting their help with disrepair problems because they fear such a response from their landlord; welcomes the independent review of the private rented sector announced on 12th December 2007; acknowledges the sector's growing role in meeting housing need; further acknowledges the improved redress for tenants of social landlords proposed by the Housing and Regeneration Bill; further notes that international examples of good practice in legislating against retaliatory eviction can be found in 36 US states, France, New Zealand and Australia; supports the campaign led by the Citizens Advice Bureau and supported by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, Local Authorities' Co-ordinators of Regulatory Services, the Housing Ombudsman, Child Poverty Action Group, Shelter and the Association of Tenancy Relations Officers to prevent retaliatory eviction by restricting the use of section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 where a tenant has recently taken steps to enforce statutory rights regarding disrepair or health and safety issues; and calls upon the Government to take steps to achieve this at the earliest opportunity.