COMMONS AMENDMENTS (Hansard, 31 July 1974)

HL Deb 31 July 1974 vol 353 cc2335-41 2335

§ [References are to Bill 82 as first printed for the Commons]

§ [Nos. 1, 15, 16, 18, 19, 39, 40, 41, 42 and 43] 2336 [1.] Title, line 2, after 1971 insert "and the provisions of Part 11 of the Housing Finance Act 1972 and of the Housing (Financial Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1972 relating to rent allowances". [15.] Before Clause 10 insert the following new Clauses—

§ Rent allowances

§ (1) On and after such day as the Secretary of State may by order made by statutory instrument appoint, so much of Part II of the Housing Finance Act 1972 (rent rebates and rent allowances) as requires that, in order to qualify for an allowance, a person occupying a dwelling under a Part VI letting must be a qualified person, within the meaning of section 19(12) of that Act, shall cease to have effect.

§ (2) The proviso to subsection (1) of section 25 of the Housing Finance Act 1972 (which, in the case of certain furnished lettings. determines the rent which is eligible to be met by a rebate or an allowance for the purposes of Schedule 3 to that Act) shall cease to have effect on the commencement date.

§ (3) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (2) above, in the case of a person who immediately before the commencement date was a tenant under a Part VI letting, the provisions of subsection (4) below shall apply if, for an allowance period which was current on or ended immediately before the commencement date, the tenant was entitled to an allowance towards the rent payable under the Part VI letting and, in calculating that allowance for the last week of that period which ended before the commencement date, the rent which, for the purposes of Schedule 3 to the Housing Finance Act 1972, was eligible to be met by a rebate or an allowance was that determined under paragraph (a) of the proviso to section 25(1) of that Act (the occupational clement of the rent or of the residue of the rent plus 25 per cent.).

§ (4) If, by virtue of subsection (3) above, this subsection applies in relation to a tenant, then, subject to subsection (5) below, on and after the commencement date, if and so long as—

(a) the tenant continues to occupy as his home the dwelling to which, immediately before that date, the Part VI letting referred to in subsection (3) above applied, and
(b) the tenant continues to be entitled to an allowance towards the rent payable by him for that dwelling, and
(c) the rent continues to include payment for the use of furniture, the rent which, for the purposes of Schedule 3 to the Housing Finance Act 1972, is eligible to be met by a rebate or an allowance shall, in his case, be the amount of the rent which was so eligible for the week mentioned in subsection (3) above (in this section referred to as "the former eligible rent").

§ (5) If, for any week of an allowance period when, apart from this subsection, subsection (4) above would apply in relation to a tenant, that subsection shall cease to apply if—

(a) the amount determined under section 25(1) of the Housing Finance Act 1972 as the rent which is eligible to be met by a 2337 rebate or an allowance exceeds the former eligible rent, or
(b) the rent recoverable from the tenant, exclusive of any part thereof attributable to rates, is less than the former eligible rent, or
(c) part of the dwelling is sub-let and the former eligible rent either did not take account of the occupational element of any rent payable by a sub-tenant or took account of such an element which is less than the occupational element of the rent payable for that week by the sub-tenant,

and, accordingly, from the beginning of that week the rent which is eligible to be met by a rebate or an allowance shall be that determined as mentioned in paragraph (a) above.

§ (6) In subsection (1) of section 25 of the Housing Finance Act 1972 after the words "of the rent" there shall be inserted, in substitution for the words there inserted by paragraph 17 of Schedule 1 to the Furnished Lettings (Rent Allowances) Act 1973, the words "(or if, in the case of an allowance, any amount falls to be deducted by virtue of paragraph 14 of Schedule 4 to this Act, the occupational element of the residue of the rent remaining after deducting those amounts)".

§ (7) Subsections (2) and (3) of the said section 25 shall be amended as follows:—

(a)at the end of subsection (2) there shall be added the words "and
(c) loss, in the case of an allowance, any amonnt which, in the case of the tenant concerned, is prescribed as a deduction by virtue of paragraph (c) of subsection (3) below"; and
(b)at the end of subsection (3) there shall be added the words "and
(c) prescribe deductions from rent for the purposes of subsection (2)(c) above in the case of tenants of such descriptions as may be specified in the regulations who are for the time being in receipt of awards or grants under any provision of sections 1 to 3 of the Education Act 1962 or any other award or grant which is paid out of money provided by Parliament and is determined by the Secretary of State to be an analogous award or grant,

and different provision may be made by virtue of paragraph (c) above in relation to different periods and different classes of awards or grants".

§ (8) In subsection (1) of section 26 of the Housing Finance Act 1972 (interpretation of Part II) in the definition of "tenant" after paragraph (c) there shall be inserted the following paragraph:— (d) a person who is treated as a private tenant under a Part VI letting by virtue of subsection (8A) of section 19 of this Act".

§ (9) The said section 26 shall apply in relation to subsections (1) to (5) above as if those subsections were included in Part II of the Housing Finance Act 1972 and, without prejudice to the application of that section, the reference in subsection (3) above to a tenant under a Part VI letting includes a reference 2338 to a person who is treated as if he were a private tenant under a Part VI letting by virtue of section 19(8A) of that Act and any reference in that subsection or subsection (4) above to a Part VI letting means, in relation to a person who is so treated, the letting referred to in the said section 19(8A).

§ [16]

§ Rent allowance in Scotland

§ (1) On and after such day as the Secretary of Slate may by order made by statutory instrument appoint, so much of section 16 of the Act of 1972 (rent allowances) as requires that, for certain persons to be or to be treated as private tenants, they must be qualified persons within the meaning of subsection (S) of that section, shall cease to have effect.

§ (2) In paragraph I5(l)(g)(ii) of Schedule 3 to the Act of 1972 (which provides that in ascertaining the amount of an allowance in respect of a furnished letting a certain amount of rent payable is to be disregarded), the words "125 per cent. of" shall cease to have effect on the commencement date.

§ (3) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (2) above, in the case of a person who immediately before the commencement date was a tenant of a dwelling-house under a furnished letting, the provisions of subsection (4) below shall apply if, for an allowance period which was current on or ended immediately before that date, the tenant was entitled to an allowance towards the rent payable under the furnished letting which was calculated, for the last week of that period which ended before that date, by reference to an amount of rent which, after making the deduction (if any) required by head (i) of paragraph 15(l)(g) of Schedule 3 to the Act of 1972, was more than the estimated fair rent referred to in head (ii) of that paragraph but not more than 125 per cent. of that estimated fair rent.

§ (4) If, by virtue of subsection (3) above, this subsection applies in relation to a tenant, then, if and so long as he continues on and after the commencement date to be—

(a) a tenant of the same dwelling-house under the same letting (whether or not it continues to be a furnished letting), and
(b) entitled to an allowance towards the rent under the letting concerned,

the allowance shall be calculated by reference to the amount of rent referred to in subsection (3) above until—

(i) the rent recoverable from the tenant for any week of an allowance period is less than the amount referred to in that subsection, or
(ii) the amount of rent by reference to which, but for this subsection, the allowance for any such week would be calculated is higher than the amount referred to in subsection (3) above,

whichever is the earlier; and as from the beginning of that week the allowance shall be calculated by reference to the amount of rent to which an authority would be entitled to have regard but for this subsection.

2339

§ (5) Paragraph 17 of Schedule 2 to the Act of 1972 shall be amended as follows—

(a) in sub-paragraph (1) for the words "sub-paragraph (2) below" there shall be substituted the words "the following provisions of this paragraph";
(b) at the end there shall be added the following sub-paragraphs—

§ "(3) It shall be the duty of every authority, for the purpose of computing the amount of an allowance towards the rent payable by tenants of such classes as may be prescribed who are for the time being in receipt of—

(a) an award or grant, being a bursary, scholarship or allowance granted under section 49(1) or 75(f) of the Education (Scotland) Act 1962, or
(b) any other award or grant which is paid out of money provided by Parliament and is determined by the Secretary of State to be analagous to any such bursary, scholarship or allowance, to treat the rent as reduced by such amount as may be prescribed.

§ (4) In sub-paragraph (3) above "prescribed" means prescribed by regulations made by the Secretary of State by statutory instrument which shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

§ (5) Regulations under this paragraph may make different provision in relation to different periods and different classes of awards or grants."

§ (6) In this section "the Act of 1972" means the Housing (Financial Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1972; and section 22 of the Act of 1972 (interpretation of Part II of that Act) shall apply in relation to this section as if it were included in that Part. [18] Clause 11 (2), fourth line, after 'Act' insert ' other than sections (Rent allowances) and (Rent allowances in Scotland) above '. [19] Clause 12, at end insert 'but, in the case of the enactments specified in Part II of that Schedule, only with effect from the day appointed for the purposes of subsection (1) of sections (Rent allowances) and (Rent allowances in Scotland) above '.

§ [39] Schedule 3, at end insert— ' 3.—(1) The provisions of this paragraph shall have effect with respect to the period beginning on the commencement date and ending on the day appointed for the purposes of subsection (1) of section (Rent allowances) of this Act, and in the following provisions of this paragraph that period is referred to as "the interim period". (2) During the interim period every allowance scheme (including an allowance scheme which is the model scheme, as defined in section 20(7) of the Housing Finance Act 1972) shall be deemed to be varied to such extent as is necessary to take account of the provisions of subsections (2) to (5) of section (Rent allowances) of this Act and of the repeals of provisions of Part II of that Act contained in Part I of Schedule 4 to this Act. 2340 (3) No account shall be taken for the purposes of section 24 of the Housing Finance Act 1972 (publicity for schemes) of any deemed variation of a scheme which is effected by sub-paragraph (2) above. (4) Where, during the interim period, an authority vary their allowance scheme to take account of the provisions of the subsections and of the repeals referred to in subsection (2) above, the variation shall not take effect until the day appointed as mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) above. (5) At any time within the interim period an authority may vary their allowance scheme, with effect from the day appointed as mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) above, to take account of the modifications of Part II of the Housing Finance Act 1972 effected on and after that day by subsection (1) of section (Rent allowances) of, and Part II of Schedule 4 to, this Act. (6) In this paragraph "allowance scheme" and "authority" have the same meanings as in Part II of the Housing Finance Act 1972.

§ 4. Subsection (3) of section 20 of the Housing Finance Act 1972 (proposals for regulations varying Schedules 3 and 4 to that Act to be referred to the Advisory Committee on Rent Rebates and Rent Allowances) shall not apply to regulations which are—

(a) made within the period of three months beginning on the commencement date; and
(b) expressed to be made for the purpose of making in either of those Schedules variations consequential upon provision made by virtue of paragraph (c) of section 25(3) of that Act (as set out in section (Rent allowances) (7) of this Act.)'

' 5.—(1) The provisions of this paragraph shall have effect with respect to the period beginning on the commencement date and ending on the day appointed for the purposes of subsection (1) of section (Rent allowances in Scotland) of this Act, and in the following provisions of this paragraph that period is referred to as "the interim period". (2) During the interim period every allowance scheme (including an allowance scheme which is the model scheme as defined in section 17(5) of the Act of 1972) shall be deemed to be varied to such extent as is necessary to take account of the provisions of subsections (2) to (4) of section (Rent allowances in Scotland) of this Act. (3) No account shall be taken for the purposes of section 19(2) of the Act of 1972 (publicity for allowance schemes) of any deemed variation of a scheme which is effected by sub-paragraph (2) above. (4) Where, during the interim period, an authority vary their allowance scheme to take account of the provisions of the subsections referred to in sub-paragraph (2) above, the variation shall not take effect until the day appointed as mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) above. (5) At any time within the interim period an authority may vary, with effect from the day appointed as mentioned in sub-paragraph 2341 (1) above, their allowance scheme to take account of the modifications of section 16 of the Act of 1972 effected on and after that day by subsection (1) of section (Rent allowances in Scotland of this Act.

§ [41] Schedule 4, page 20, line 49, at end insert—

' 1972 c. 46.

The Housing (Financial Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1972.

In Schedule 3, in paragraph 15(1)(g)(ii) the words "125 per cent. of".'

§ [42] Column 3, leave out line 50 and insert—

	'In section 23, in subsection (1) the words "or making orders under section 25(3A) of this Act"
	In section 25, in subsection (1) the proviso, subsection (3A) and in subsection (4) the words "and orders".
	Section 89.'

§ [43] Line 51, at end add—

' 1973 c. 6.

The Furnished Lettings (Rent Allowances) Act 1973.

In Schedule 1, paragraphs 17, 19 and 20.'