HC Deb 14 June 1978 vol 951 cc988-91
8. Mr. Sainsbury

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how much the number of private rented properties to let has diminished since the Rent Act 1974 came into force.

16. Mr. Durant

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how much the number of private rented properties to let has diminished since the Rent Act 1974 came into force.

Mr. Freeson

From current estimates, there appears to have been no significant change since 1974 in the rate of decline in private lettings. We shall have a better idea of the decline since 1971 when we have the results from the national dwelling and housing survey later this year.

Mr. Sainsbury

Does the Minister agree that his reply shows that there is a continuing decline? Does he accept that, whatever may have happened to the level of evictions, the availability of accommodation has continued to decline drastically, to the disadvantage of all those who are looking for homes, particularly the young? Does he further agree that, unless something can be done to make better use of our available housing stock and keep it in good condition, particularly in the inner city areas, he will not succeed in his policy for inner urban areas?

Mr. Freeson

I take the last point first. I accept that there is a great need to improve the physical condition of the amenities of large numbers of rented properties, and, indeed, some owner-occupied houses, particularly in, but not confined to, inner areas.

On the central point of the supplementary question, the private rented sector has been declining steadily for at least half a century. For many years it has been declining at about 100,000 or more per year. The biggest single decrease, as has been stated by my right hon. Friend, occurred in the wake of the 1957 Act. The rate of decrease per year almost doubled.

Although over many years there has been a major decrease in the size of the private rented sector, broadly speaking the total number of rented dwellings is the same today as it was 30 years ago. It is in the region of about 8 million. The difference is that most of them are owned and provided by local authorities.

Mr. Durant

Despite the Minister's protestations on this matter, does he accept that in areas, such as Reading, which are attractive areas for people to come and work in there is a desperate shortage of accommodation for single persons and for students? Will he, in his rent review, look at short-term leasing, because it could be (ne of the cures to this problem?

Mr. Freeson

The question of short-hold tenancies or lettings has been raised on more than one occasion in the last year or two years in the House and elsewhere. The general view that we have expressed ahead of any final conclusions that we may reach on the Rent Act review is that, as at present and as previously postulated, such ideas would undermine the whole concept of security of tenure generally and, therefore, could not be accepted.

Mr. Ovenden

Does my right hon. Friend accept that the real problem with the Rent Act is not its harshness but its inadequacy to protect tenants and their right to security of tenure? Does he agree that the recent judgment in Somma v. Hazelhurst, together with the growth of agencies dedicated to the evasion of the Rent Act, makes amending legislation to protect tenants far too important to await the outcome of the review body's report?

Mr. Freeson

I cannot usefully add to what has been stated by my right hon. Friend in answer to a previous Question. I urge my hon. Friend not to overstate the position. If it were true that the Rent Acts had not served their purpose in establishing security of tenure, there would be urgency. Loopholes have been established recently in certain court cases which have brought certain aspects of the legislative drafting into question, but that does not alter the fact that in the last 10 years or more since 1965 there has been security of tenure. That has benefited hundreds of thousands of families. We intend that it should continue to do so.

Mr. Costain

Will the Minister come out of cloud-cuckoo land? Does he realise that his enthusiasm for security of tenure is causing thousands of houses to be left empty? Will he answer a simple question? Why is it that once upon a time houses for rent were owned by pension funds, including trade union pension funds, but pension funds are now buying antiques instead of providing houses for the working class?

Mr. Freeson

I shall not enter into that argument. I cannot answer in one sentence the first part of the question about the original source of private rented accommodation. These questions lead me to ask Opposition Members on the Front and Back Benches whether it is the intention of the Conservative Party to abolish security of tenure. Until now, at successive General Elections they have issued statements denying any such intention. Perhaps we can be told what their intention is.

Mr. Ronald Atkins

Is it not true that the decline in the private rented sector has occurred since the First World War, when it was decided that if we were to have houses fit for people—let alone heroes—to live in they would have to be Government-assisted by helping with mortgages and subsidising the council sector? Is it not true that the Labour Party has done this consistently in order to improve standards?

Mr. Freeson

My hon. Friend is right. That is what gave rise to the information that I provided earlier. There are today about 8 million rented dwellings. There were about 8 million rented dwellings 30 or more years ago. The bulk of them today are provided to good standards by the local authorities. In earlier days the bulk of them were provided by the private sector to bad standards.

Mr. Heseltine

Instead of throwing spurious charges at the Opposition Benches, the Minister would do better to answer the question which has been put to him repeatedly: when will he show real concern for the 750,000 empty houses in which people could now be living if he published the review of the Rent Acts, which are a major cause of the problem?

Mr. Freeson

I do not accept that the Rent Acts are a cause of the problem. More action has been taken under the sponsorship of this Government to tackle the problem of empty properties in the stress areas than was ever taken when the Conservatives were in office. I have made no spurious charges. I asked a simple question. Is it the Conservative Party's intention to abolish security of tenure for tenants?