§ 8. Mr. Doddsasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs what progress is being made in the objectives of the Rent Act; what evidence he has of unreasonable demands by landlords from tenants of decontrolled houses; and what effect he estimates evictions under the Act will have on the housing problems of local authorities.
§ Mr. H. BrookeThe Rent Act is already enabling landlords to put and keep their property in better repair, and is encouraging them to re-let rather than to sell. The decontrol provisions are working, and cases of genuine hardship should be met by the provisions of the Landlord and Tenant (Temporary Provisions) Bill. I anticipate no serious difficulties for local authorities.
§ Mr. DoddsWill the right hon. Gentleman state what has been the effect of his warning to unscrupulous landlords who are trying to make tenants who have short leases; of neglected property take on all obligations except for major structural operations? What information has the right hon. Gentleman that the evictions after October, as a result of the Rent Act, will not create major problems for some local authorities at a time when the housing programme is being cut down materially?
§ Mr. BrookeSince the warning to which the hon. Member refers, I have introduced the Landlord and Tenant (Temporary Provisions) Bill and that Bill, in the course of its passage through Parliament, was amended, I should have thought, in the sense which the hon. Member would approve. Nobody can tell for certain the number of people who may be homeless after October, but I know that the London County Council first made an estimate of 30,000 and then reduced it to 3,000. I think that it will be lower than that.