Full Council 14/07/11 - part one

A quick meeting by our standards
Maiden speeches from Cllr Woolridge, Phelps and Bean.  Whether I agreed with what they said or not, speeking at full Council can be a scary experience for those not used to public speaking. They all made their contributions well.
The Liberal Democrats proposed a motion, influenced by Shelter it called upon the Council to do more to protect residents from rogue landlords and also recognise good ones.  It also asked the Government to do more.  

If the outcome is to bring peoples attention to the support they can access under existing powers then it is a good thing.  However doing something is no substitute for doing more.  The Conservative did not oppose the motion, but disputed Shelters statistics stating a million people had been the victim of a landlord scam.  

(He felt this unlikely as only 3 million were private renting.  I understand that the million figure applies to all who have, at some point , rented and felt ripped off. Many have since purchased homes or gained social rents hence the figure).

Labour supported the motion, sadly they tried to make political profit out of the misery of others.  It is a shame that Labour insist  on looking back at the past 15 years through rose tinted glasses.  Elected in 1997, they didn't commission a report on the private rented sector until 2008.  Then did pretty much nothing with it! by blaming everything that is wrong with the housing sector over the past 13 years on the coalition!

I have blogged their record on housing in 'untinted' form before here in case they had forgotten

You can see the text of my speech (though what I planned to say and actually said may differ a bit)

In introducing this motion I should make clear this is not intended  to attack all private landlords.  

From those who operate a sound and ethical business to the smaller scale operations where someone has acquired a property as a form of pension, our borough has many good landlords who provide a good service to our residents and work in partnership with our housing officers providing homes to those who would otherwise be homeless.  

All to often media stories can give the impression that all landlords are beastly money grabbers.  Many are not - I hope that if this motion is supported that those good landlords can be recognised through a scheme.

In an ideal world there would be private landlords operating in a competitive market offering home seekers an alternative to buying or social rents.

The reality is the world  is not ideal.  The administration are under significant pressure to build less homes in the future.  Demand already exceeds supply, that situation is set to get worse.  More and more families will be forced to turn to a private sector creating a situation where rogue landlords can flourish.

Politicians love using words  such as choice and competition .  The sad fact is neither word is relevant in the rented housing market today.

We have a duty to step in.

Our powers are limited and it requires government to take action.  That is part of this motion.

To drive  a car I need a licence , to replace your boiler I need to be registered, to work on a building site I need to carry a card.  To run a restaurant I have to be trained and hold a certificate and be routinely inspected.   To be a landlord.......I just need a spare room.

A home is one of the most basic needs.  For many the advance rent and deposit is everything they have.  They entrust it to someone they know nothing about.

If your not happy with the service your landlord provides, you probably don’t have the means to walk away.  

Leave and you may not see your deposit again.  

Can you really complain against the only person that stands between you and homelessness?

Despite the increase in complaints, I am convinced this is just the tip of the iceberg.  Victims of a poor landlord want to find a new home and move on, complaining about your former landlord is along way down the list of priorities – and rogue landlords know it.

Any government could do more and should. We should ask them to tonight.

Locally we also have a role to play.  Creating a scheme that enables us to assess and approve good landlords will give our residents greater confidence when looking to rent a new home.

It will offer some protection to them, but also our landlords.  Lets not pretend there is no such thing as a bad tenant.

When a  landlord seeks the assistance of this Council or the Courts in dealing with a bad tenant, being identified as ‘a good landlord’ through a council scheme may give them a stronger case.

It is right that we expect standards from our landlords.  There are some shocking practices an behaviours out there.

I could tell you a real life story.  But fear breaching confidentiality.  I think most of you through case work or a career in supporting vulnerable people probably know a story of your own.  

These stories tend to end in the same way - A landlord making profit from someones misery

So as the other part of this motion.  I urge the portfolio holder  to create a meaningful scheme that makes this borough a hard place for rogue landlords and better and safer place for our residents.