News Release

This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007

Listen

Putting private sector housing under the microscope

28/03/2001

Housing Improvement Task Force sets out its Workplan

The review into the state of housing in the private sector in Scotland took a step forward today with the first meeting of the Housing and Improvement Task Force.

The Task Force, chaired by Social Justice Minister Jackie Baillie, was announced in December 2000 and has members from across the housing sector including the legal and surveying professions, lenders, Shelter, local authorities and academia.

Its main aim is to look at the state of housing in the private sector and bring forward proposals for change.

Ms Baillie said:

"The Executive's aim is to ensure everyone in Scotland has a warm dry home - whether in the public or private sector.

"The Task Force will be putting the private sector under the microscope, looking at the problems of disrepair and the barriers to improvements."

As part of its forward work plan it is proposed that the Task Force will set up four sub groups to look at specific areas of work. These will be:

Owner occupiers resident in housing that requires improvement or repairs.

To examine:

  • The extent of disrepair and obsolescence in the owner-occupied sector;
  • Local authority responsibilities and powers;
  • Incentives/disincentives for owner-occupiers to make repairs;
  • Arrangements for financing improvements and repairs; and
  • Awareness and attitudes towards improvements and repairs.

Individuals buying and selling property

To examine:

  • Costs and delays for house purchasers as a result of the house buying process in Scotland;
  • The information available to intending purchasers about the condition of the property and its likely future maintenance;
  • The scope for reducing multiple surveys and valuations; and
  • The role of lenders in encouraging owners to maintain and improve the condition of their properties.

Landlords renting property in the private sector (and the interests of tenants who occupy these properties)

To examine:

  • The extent of disrepair and obsolescence in the privately rented sector;
  • Local authority responsibilities and powers including HMO licensing;
  • Incentives and disincentives to investment in stock by private landlords;
  • The impact of other forms of regulation (health and safety, delict) on private landlords; and
  • The impact of tenancy legislation on investment in the privately rented sector.

Common or shared obligations in respect of property

To examine:

  • The extent to which disrepair and poor maintenance is greater in properties with common or shared obligations;
  • Current arrangements in place for the management of communal repairs and shared areas;
  • Current arrangements for funding communal repairs and maintenance work, including sinking funds; and
  • The role of local authorities and other bodies in encouraging communal repairs and maintenance.

The Task Force will also consider a proposed outline timetable for its work:

  • March 2001 - first meeting
  • April/May 2001 - first meeting of the sub groups
  • September 2001 - second meeting of full Task Force
  • November 2001 - third meeting of Task Force
  • January 2002 - publication of 'problems' report

BACKGROUND

1. The full membership of the Task Force is:

Chairman:

Jackie Baillie, Minister for Social Justice

External Members:

David Chalmers, Dunfermline Building Society, Confederation of Mortgage Lenders

Donald MacRae, Lloyds TSB Scotland plc

John Spencely, Architect, Member of the Scottish Homes Board

Anne Lear, Chief Executive of Govanhill Housing Association

Chris Cunningham, Deputy Chief Executive of Glasgow Housing Association

Iain Gillies, Graham and Sibbald, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors

Robert Rennie, Ballantyne and Copeland, School of Law, Glasgow University

John Blackwood, O'Neills Surveyors and Estate Agents, Association of Residential Letting Agencies and Scottish Association of Landlords

Martyn Evans, Director of the Scottish Consumer Council

Neil Watts, Hacking and Paterson, Property Factors Association

Alan Ferguson, Chartered Institute of Housing

Liz Nicolson, Shelter

Monica Patterson, Head of Housing Services, North Lanarkshire Council

Moira Munro, School of Planning and Housing, Heriot Watt University

Professor Lorne Crerar, Harper MacLeod

2. The overall terms of reference for the Task Force are, to consider:

  • The forms of financial assistance available for owner occupiers;
  • The powers available to local authorities to compel private owners to invest in their property;
  • The likely effect of providing better information as part of the house purchase process - taking account of proposals for sellers surveys and sellers pack;
  • The arrangements in place for the management of flatted blocks in private ownership;
  • The proposal for stronger regulation of the privately rented sector, for example, by extending the existing licensing arrangements which have been recently introduced for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs); and
  • The effect of tenancy legislation in the private rented sector.

News Release: SE0827/2001
28 Mar 2001

Page updated: Monday, July 30, 2007