Welsh bid for increased housing powers fails

Opposition from Conservative MPs in Wales and Westminster meant the application for increased legal competence could not be considered before the Parliament closed last week ahead of next month’s general election.

Opponents objected to the control the bill would have given Assembly members over the right to buy.

This is the second legislative competence order – the document that must be drawn up by Wales to ask Westminster for power – that has failed. The other had a more narrow scope, asking mainly for powers over the right to buy.

The latest order would have given much greater control over housing issues in the country, such as overregulation, gypsy and traveller sites and tackling homelessness.

The National Assembly members voted in favour last month and the only hurdle remained being approved by Parliament. But only a certain number of bills could be rushed through before the pre-election closure of Parliament, and without full backing from different parties, it has now missed out on being passed.

CIH Cymru has been strongly supporting the LCO.  Keith Edwards, director of CIH Cymru, was ‘disappointed’.

But he vowed: ‘We will continue to work with the deputy minister [of housing Jocelyn Davies] and others to ensure that Wales gets the powers it needs to deliver effective housing, regeneration, homelessness and support measures for the people of Wales.’

Nick Bennett, chief executive of umbrella-group Community Housing Cymru, said: ‘We are really disappointed and frustrated that this has happened as this LCO would have allowed for a better housing system in Wales. Having worked on this for the past two years, all efforts aimed at increasing investment, fighting homelessness and needlessly empty homes have come to nothing.’

Director of Shelter Cymru John Puzey said: ‘The failure of the housing LCO to gain Parliamentary approval means that we still do not have the powers we urgently need to ensure that everyone in Wales has the right to a decent home.

‘The fact that this happening during a recession means there will be real impact on hundreds of families and vulnerable people across Wales struggling to keep their homes or get one in the first place.’

A Welsh Assembly Government spokesperson: ‘[The LCO] has overwhelming support from the housing sector in Wales and received positive and constructive scrutiny from the National Assembly and the Welsh Affairs Committee. We will seek to commence discussions as soon as possible with the new UK Government and will then consider how to move forward.’

The Welsh Assembly voted to hold a referendum for greater powers over all policy areas, which could be held in the autumn. This would supersede the need for an LCO.

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