§ Mr. HayesTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions he has had with private landlords regarding proposals to pay housing benefit directly to tenants; and what the outcome of those discussions was. [145297]
§ Mr. PondThe Department consulted both formally and informally on the Government's proposals for a Local Housing Allowance (LHA), which is now in operation or about to go-live in 9 "Pathfinder" local authorities.
The formal consultation exercise was, as is customary, conducted through the Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC). The Committee received 73 responses from both individuals and organisations with an interest in the LHA reforms, including 1085W representative bodies of landlords. SSAC made a number of recommendations, to which the Government responded. The relevant Command Paper, 5955 was presented to Parliament on 24 September 2003 and is available in the Library.
Additionally, Ministers and officials have received numerous informal representations about the Allowance. Many have been from landlords who have concerns about our decision to remove routine direct payments to them. We welcome this feedback and we are now encouraging it routinely in newsletters that the Department issues to landlords and welfare groups in the Pathfinder areas. We remain committed to the idea of making payment of Benefit to the tenant where possible in order to encourage them to take more personal responsibility for managing their affairs.
Discussions are ongoing and the views and experiences of landlords will form an important part of the Department's evaluation of the Local Housing Allowance.