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Deregulation measures pass committee stage
Deregulation measures forming part of the package aimed at moving housing associations back into the private sector have been passed unanimously by a parliamentary committee.
The draft bill, which is being put through as an affirmative statutory instrument – meaning it cannot be amended – went before a legislation committee this afternoon.
The government estimates that the new measures, aimed at limiting local authority control over associations formed out of stock transfers, will affect around 100 housing associations around the country.
Housing minister Alok Sharma told the committee: “Housing associations need a stable investment environment in which they can play their part in fixing the housing market and get on with building new homes. The fact that they are classified as public sector for the purpose of technical accounting is providing an unnecessary distraction.”
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Mr Sharma added that sector figures had told him reclassification should happen “as soon as possible”.
The Office for National Statistics confirmed last week that if the measures were to be passed by both Houses of Parliament, it would reverse its 2015 decision to classify housing associations as public sector bodies.
Labour MPs in the committee did not vote against the measures but Tony Lloyd, Labour’s shadow minister for housing, complained that no consultation had been carried out.
Mr Lloyd also cited poor decisions made by Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation with regard to Grenfell Tower as evidence for the necessity of “some kind of guarantee that we are going to see some proper stewardship, some proper independence of approach, some proper transparency that can prevent the subversion of public monies for private advantage”.
Labour peers will table a motion of regret to the proposals tomorrow in the House of Lords, but will not seek to block the legislation.
