<p>Housing Benefit is a social security benefit that provides help with rent. It is currently administered by local authorities, who have the statutory responsibility for its day-to-day administration.</p><p>We have provided local authorities with strong powers of enforcement to stop the worst offenders from letting property. These include fines of up to £30,000, banning orders and rent repayment orders that force irresponsible landlords to repay housing benefit they have received for up to 12 months’ rent. We expect councils to use these strong powers to crack down on those who knowingly rent out unsafe accommodation and remove them from the sector. Many are already doing so. We have also recently provided nearly £2.4 million to support 55 local authorities to tackle rogue landlords.</p>