A recent report on exempt accommodation by the Select Committee for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, detailed the poor quality of the exempt accommodation sector.
London Assembly Members believe the current system is being exploited by a growing minority of providers who are charging high rents without providing the appropriate level of support that their residents need.
Today the London Assembly agreed a motion for greater regulation of exempt accommodation.
Sem Moema AM, who proposed the motion said:
“All Londoners deserve a safe, suitable, and affordable place to call home, but unfortunately, far too many are being failed by the system.
“Low-income tenants, homeless people and survivors of domestic abuse are being exploited by rogue Landlords who game the benefits system for profit, with no help in sight.
“The lack of regulation to tackle unscrupulous landlords is preventing people from rebuilding their lives and leaving homelessness behind for good.
“That’s why am supporting Crisis’ Regulate the Rogues campaign. We urgently need government to impose laws to end this appalling practice and get Londoners the support they need and deserve.”
The full text of the motion is:
The Assembly notes the recent report on exempt accommodation by the Select Committee for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities which detailed the poor quality of the exempt accommodation sector. We are concerned that the current system is being exploited by a growing minority of providers who are charging high rents without providing the appropriate level of support that their residents need.
The Assembly also notes the Deputy Mayor for Housing & Residential Development’s comments at the Assembly’s Housing Committee that City Hall targets for building 1,750 – 3,500 supported accommodation units within the Mayor’s Affordable Homes programme are not keeping pace with demand.
The Assembly believes that there is a strong case for greater regulation of exempt accommodation to put safeguards in place for residents and ensure that providers are giving their residents an appropriate level of support.
The Assembly therefore supports Crisis’ “Regulate the Rogues” campaign and strongly welcomes and supports Bob Blackman’s Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Bill, supported by the Government, to urgently regulate providers in England and end the scandal unfolding in exempt accommodation. We note that the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Bill passed its second reading in Parliament on 18 November 2022 and we call on:
- The Government and all London MPs to continue its support for the Bill as it progresses through Parliament; and
- The Mayor and the Chair of the Assembly to write to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities urging him to urgently provide a regulatory framework for the exempt accommodation sector.
Notes to editors
- Watch the full webcast.
- The motion was agreed unanimously.
- Sem Moema AM, who proposed the motion, is available for interviews.
- As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor.
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