Property licencing schemes should be doubled in length and therefore last for ten years, the Chartered Institute of Health Officers has said within an amendment to the Renters’ Rights Bill.

Currently in its committee stage, the amendment is sponsored by Green Party co-leader and MP Carla Denyer (pictured).

She says: “This new clause would increase the maximum duration of discretionary licensing schemes from five to ten years and would enable local authorities operating selective licensing schemes to use licence conditions to improve housing conditions”.

The CIEH says that licensing enables local authorities to inspect privately rented housing using enforceable conditions - and to identify and resolve problems - without the need for tenants to have complained.

It also believes the changes proposed in the amendment would remove unnecessary barriers to the use of licensing schemes to improve housing standards, something current schemes do not include as a ‘directly enforceable requirement’ for minimum standards.

The organisation also argues that increasing the maximum duration of licensing schemes, which include selective licensing and additional licensing schemes for HMOs with less than five occupiers, would allow local authorities to set up more ‘permanent’ teams and local partnerships.

Working hard

Mark Elliott (pictured) President of the CIEH, says: “We have been working hard to highlight these issues and are delighted that they will now be discussed by a parliamentary committee.”

What the CIEH doesn’t mention is that some MPs and many legal experts worry that having both a national database (in England and NI) of landlords as well as selective and additional licencing will see a ‘doubled up’ system introduced, creating unnecessary red tape.

But these critics have been swimming against the political tide since Labour won the General Election; housing minister Matthew Pennycook has already hinted that councils will soon be able to increase the geographic size of their licencing schemes without needing central approval from the Secretary of State, a measure that the CIEH also supports. It has alo written a briefing document saying taht it wants to see selective licencing allowed in areas where the private rented sector doesn't make up a high proportion of local housing stock.