MP calls for clampdown on rogue landlords

A MP has expressed her desire to see more done in order to clampdown on rogue landlords.

Don Valley MP Caroline Flint has called for selective licensing to be extended across the whole borough. This call follows a visit from the MP to Newham in London, where the council already runs a borough-wide licensing scheme.

Licensing

The Labour MP wants to see her constituency in Doncaster follow Newham’s lead, by implementing fresh selective licensing in an attempt to tackle bad housing conditions, low demand and high deprivation.

Flint said, ‘Newham is a leader in tackling the problems of slum landlords, particularly those who would rent an unsafe property to tenants, or fill a property to the point of overcrowding.’[1]

After viewing what she called, ‘shameful’ private rental housing, Flint stated: ‘To tackle this appalling state of affairs, Newham has a borough-wide approach, with an enforcement team that works hand in hand with the police to support compliance with the scheme.’[1]

‘Many landlords in Newham are good, responsible landlords, but a minority of criminal landlords take advantage of residents and of poor quality accommodation,’ she added.[1]

MP calls for clampdown on rogue landlords.

Praise

Flint, a former housing minister, moved to praise Newham Council, which has taken 890 prosecutions and banned 28 landlords, since their licensing scheme was introduced in 2013.

Concluding, she observed: ‘I see the rise of private landlords in our low rent areas, and with that the rise in criminal and irresponsible landlords. The Council has started a licensing scheme in Hexthorpe but the Mayor has promised to extend this to Edlington. I hope licensing will be rolled out much more widely.’[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/11/mp-wants-to-see-more-done-to-clampdown-on-rogue-landlords