§ The Minister for Housing and Planning (Keith Hill)My right hon. Friend the Depute Prime Minister will publish for public consultation on 25 June, a paper on accounting for leaseholders monies.
90WSService charge payers are entitled to be confident that the money they pay towards the upkeep of their building is held properly, and is used for the purposes it is provided for. This is an area which requires strengthening, and the accounting provisions in the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 (the Act) provide for this.
The consultation paper invites comments on the provisions in the Act that make changes to the way in which service charge monies are held, and the information that is provided to service charge payers.
It sets out the proposals for regulations to be made by the Secretary of State. These regulations will set out the detailed requirements that landlords will have to comply with where the holding of service charge money and the provision of information relating to service charges are concerned.
Copies of the paper are being sent to a wide range of interested parties including local authorities, housing associations, financial institutions and others with an interest in this issue. The closing date for responses is 24 September.
Copies of the paper will be made available in the Libraries of the House, and will be available on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website at http:// www.odpm.gov.uk/ tomorrow.