Will Queen’s Speech include legislation date for PRS reform bill?

This week could see one of the biggest changes to the lettings industry announced as speculation mounts whether the Queen’s Speech on Tuesday will include details of when the Renters Reform Bill will enter parliament.

First revealed in April 2019 and then referenced by Her Majesty during a previous Queen’s Speech in December 2019, the legislation is to outlaw Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions used by landlords seeking to regain repossession, bolster the Section 8 notice process and usher in a national scheme of ‘lifetime deposits’ for tenants, reform or abolish Assured Shorthold Tenancies.

This would give renters longer and more stable tenancies while proposals to streamline court processes to streamline evictions would help landlords and agents.

The proposals are designed to ‘modernise’ the private rental sector in England and reset the balance of rights and responsibilities between landlords and renters.

All these proposals have also been exhaustively discussed and debated during two lengthy consultations.

“Whatever the replacement for Section 21, landlords must retain the right to repossess their homes when they have a legitimate reason to do so,” says Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the NRLA (pictured).

“We want to keep good tenants in their homes, while retaining the ability to repossess where there is legitimate reason.”

ARLA has called for all grounds for possession both existing and new to be made mandatory in order to effectively compensate for the removal of Section 21, a pilot of the proposals before they are rolled out across England and the introduction of a dedicated housing court.