Office of Public Sector Information
PART 2 continued CHAPTER 2 continued
(1) A proposal by a local authority under section 61B(1) shall specify—
(a) the part of their area proposed for designation as a pressured area, and
(b) the period, not exceeding 5 years, for which it is proposed the designation should have effect.
(2) The Scottish Ministers may issue guidance as to—
(a) the form of such a proposal,
(b) the information to be provided by a local authority in support of such a proposal.
(3) Before making a proposal under section 61B(1) in relation to any part of their area a local authority shall consult—
(a) every registered social landlord holding houses for housing purposes in the part in question, and
(b) such bodies representing the interests of tenants and other residents in that part, and such other persons, as the authority think fit.”
(1) After section 61C of the 1987 Act insert—
(1) Subsections (2) and (3) apply where a tenant serves on a landlord an application to purchase at a time when the tenant, or any joint purchaser (within the meaning of section 61(6))—
(a) has not paid the landlord rent or any other charge lawfully due to the landlord under that or any other tenancy, or
(b) has not paid any sum lawfully due in respect of—
(i) council tax in respect of the house or any other house in the local government area in which the house is situated, or
(ii) water and sewerage charges in relation to the house or any other such house.
(2) If the landlord is a local authority landlord, it is entitled (but not required) to serve on the tenant a notice of refusal under section 68.
(3) If the landlord is a registered social landlord—
(a) where the sum is a sum referred to in subsection (1)(a), the landlord is entitled (but not required) to serve such a notice on the tenant,
(b) where the sum is a sum referred to in subsection (1)(b), the landlord shall—
(i) consult the local authority for the area in which the house is situated, and
(ii) serve such a notice on the tenant unless the authority agree that such a notice should not be served.”
(2) In section 63 (application to purchase and offer to sell) of that Act, after subsection (1) insert—
“(1A) Where the landlord is a registered social landlord the tenant shall, when serving on the landlord the application to purchase, give the landlord a certificate issued by the local authority for the area in which the house is situated stating—
(a) whether the tenant and any joint purchaser have, as at the date of the certificate (which must be no more than one month before the date of the application to purchase), paid the sums referred to in section 61D(1)(b), and
(b) if they have not, the amount of any such sum lawfully due by the tenant or, as the case may be, the joint purchaser as at the date of the certificate.
(1B) A local authority shall, on the application of a tenant or joint purchaser referred to in subsection (1A), issue to that person free of charge a certificate as to the matters specified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of that subsection so far as relating to that person.
(1C) A certificate under subsection (1B) shall be issued not later than 21 days after the receipt of the application by the authority.”
After section 61D of the 1987 Act insert—
(1) Subsection (3) applies where—
(a) the landlord has served on the tenant a notice under section 14(2) of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 (asp 10) specifying a ground set out in any of paragraphs 1 to 7 of schedule 2 to that Act as the ground on which proceedings for recovery of possession of the house are to be raised, and
(b) neither of the following has occurred—
(i) the notice has ceased to be in force in accordance with section 14(5) of that Act or has been withdrawn by the landlord without proceedings for recovery of possession having been raised, or
(ii) such proceedings have been raised and have been finally determined.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1)(b)(ii) proceedings are finally determined when—
(a) the period for appealing against the interlocutor disposing of the proceedings has expired without an appeal being lodged, or
(b) where an appeal has been lodged, the appeal is withdrawn or finally determined.
(3) Where this subsection applies, section 61(1) does not apply in relation to the house referred to in subsection (1) of this section.
(4) Nothing in this section affects an application to purchase served prior to service of the notice referred to in subsection (1).”
After section 70 of the 1987 Act insert—
(1) Where—
(a) an application to purchase a house liable to demolition is served on a landlord, and
(b) it appears to the landlord that the tenant would, apart from this section, have a right under section 61 to purchase the house,
the landlord may, within one month of service of the application to purchase, instead of serving an offer to sell on the tenant, apply to the Scottish Ministers for authority to serve a notice of refusal.
(2) For the purposes of this section a house is liable to demolition if the landlord has made a decision to demolish the house.
(3) An application to the Scottish Ministers under subsection (1) shall be accompanied by such information in support of the application as the Scottish Ministers may prescribe by order made by statutory instrument.
(4) The Scottish Ministers may grant such an application if they consider it reasonable to do so in all the circumstances; and in deciding whether to grant the application they shall have regard in particular to—
(a) the period which is expected to elapse before the landlord demolishes the house in question; and
(b) the extent to which, before deciding to demolish the house, the landlord consulted the tenant about the proposal to demolish it and the effect of the proposal on the tenant’s right under section 61 to purchase it.
(5) Where the Scottish Ministers grant such an application the landlord shall serve on the tenant a notice of refusal under this section as soon as practicable, and in any event within one month of the granting of the application.
(6) Where the Scottish Ministers refuse such an application the landlord shall serve on the tenant an offer to sell under section 63(2) before—
(a) the expiry of the period of one month beginning with the refusal; or
(b) if later, the expiry of the period mentioned in that section.
(7) A statutory instrument containing an order under subsection (3) is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of the Scottish Parliament.”
(1) Section 62 (the price) of the 1987 Act is amended as follows.
(2) In subsection (3)—
(a) for paragraph (a) substitute—
“(a) 20 per cent of the market value of the house,”,
(b) in paragraph (b), for the words from “or, where” to “beyond 2” substitute “of the market value for every year beyond 5”,
(c) for the words from “60 per cent” to the end substitute “35 per cent or £15,000, whichever is less”.
(3) In subsection (3A)—
(a) for “the appropriate person” substitute “any of the persons mentioned in subsection (4)(a)(i) to (iv)”,
(b) the words “by any of these persons” are repealed.
(4) After subsection (3A) insert—
“(3B) Where a previous discount was received by two or more persons jointly, subsection (3A) has effect as if each of them had received an equal proportion of the discount.”
(5) In subsection (4)—
(a) in paragraph (a), for “such occupation” substitute “occupation of the type mentioned in subsection (3)(b)”,
(b) the words from “and, for the purposes” to the end are repealed.
(6) In subsection (5)—
(a) in paragraph (b), for “two” substitute “5”,
(b) for “higher” substitute “other”.
(7) After subsection (5) insert—
“(5A) The Scottish Ministers may by order vary the maximum amount of discount for the time being specified in subsection (3).”
(8) In subsection (6)—
(a) after “(5)” insert “or (5A)”,
(b) in paragraph (a), after “case” insert “or different areas”.
(1) Section 66 (schemes for payments to assist local authority tenants to obtain other accommodation) of the 1988 Act is amended as follows.
(2) In subsection (1)—
(a) after “authority” in the third place where it occurs insert “or of a registered social landlord under tenancies of houses situated in the area of the authority”,
(b) for “either” substitute “or of a registered social landlord, by one or more of the following”,
(c) after paragraph (a) insert “or
(aa) by acquiring an interest in land and building a house on the land,”,
(d) paragraph (c) and the preceding “or” are repealed.
(3) After subsection (2) insert—
“(2A) A provision of a scheme made in pursuance of subsection (2)(a) above may in particular specify, or provide for the determination of, persons as qualifying tenants by reference to the houses to which the tenancies relate being situated in an area designated as a pressured area under section 61B of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 (c. 26).”
(4) After subsection (5) insert—
“(5A) The Scottish Ministers may issue guidance as to the form and content of schemes made by local authorities under this section; and in considering whether to approve any such scheme, the Scottish Ministers shall have regard to the extent to which it complies with any such guidance.”
(1) Sections 62A and 73A to 73D (rent to loan scheme) of the 1987 Act are repealed.
(2) Section 69(1A) (limitation on power of the Scottish Ministers to authorise refusal to sell certain houses provided for persons of pensionable age) of that Act is repealed.
(3) Section 216 (obligation of landlords to offer loans to certain tenants exercising right to purchase) of that Act is repealed.
(1) The Scottish Ministers—
(a) must, within 4 years of the coming into force of this section, and
(b) may, from time to time thereafter,
prepare and publish a report on the matters set out in subsection (2).
(2) Those matters are—
(a) the extent to which tenants have exercised their rights under Part III of the 1987 Act to purchase the houses which are the subject of the tenancies, and
(b) the effect of the exercise of those rights on—
(i) the nature and condition of the housing stock,
(ii) the needs of persons for housing accommodation, and
(iii) the demand for, and availability of, housing accommodation.
(1) Every local authority landlord and registered social landlord must, by such time as the Scottish Ministers may direct, prepare a strategy (a “tenant participation strategy”) for promoting the participation of tenants under a Scottish secure tenancy or a short Scottish secure tenancy in the formulation by the landlord of proposals in relation to the management of housing accommodation and the provision of related services by it, so far as such proposals are likely to affect such tenants.
(2) Such a strategy must include, in particular—
(a) provision as to—
(i) the arrangements for obtaining and taking account of the views of registered tenant organisations and tenants as to the matters on which the landlord should make proposals of the type referred to in subsection (1) and the nature and content of such proposals,
(ii) notifying registered tenant organisations and tenants of the matters on which the landlord expects to be making such proposals, and
(iii) ation to be provided to registered tenant organisations and tenants about such proposals and their likely effect, and
(b) an assessment of the resources (including financial and other assistance to bodies comprised of or representing tenants) required, and a statement of the resources proposed, to give effect to the strategy.
(3) Every local authority landlord and registered social landlord must maintain a register of tenant organisations and keep it open for public inspection at all reasonable times.
(4) The Scottish Ministers may by order make provision as to—
(a) the criteria to be satisfied by a body seeking registration in the register or removal from the register,
(b) the procedure to be followed in relation to applications for registration and removal from the register.
(5) A body which is aggrieved by a decision of a landlord—
(a) not to register it in the register, or
(b) to remove or not to remove it from the register,
may appeal against the decision to the Scottish Ministers, who may confirm or reverse the decision.
(6) In this Act, “registered tenant organisation”, in relation to a landlord, means a body for the time being registered in the register of tenant organisations maintained by the landlord.
(1) A local authority landlord and a registered social landlord under a Scottish secure tenancy or a short Scottish secure tenancy must notify the tenant and every registered tenant organisation of—
(a) any proposal to which subsection (2) applies, and
(b) the likely effect of the proposal on the tenant,
and must have regard to any representations made to it, within such reasonable period as is specified in the notice, by the tenant or any such organisation in relation to the proposal.
(2) This subsection applies to a proposal by the landlord concerning—
(a) its policy in relation to housing management, repairs or maintenance, where the proposal, if implemented, is likely significantly to affect the tenant,
(b) the standard of service in relation to housing management, repairs and maintenance which it intends to provide,
(c) its tenant participation strategy under section 53,
(d) a disposal which would result in a change of landlord or, if different, of owner of the house which is the subject of the tenancy.
(3) This section is without prejudice to section 53.
(1) A society, company or body of trustees for the time being approved by the Scottish Ministers for the purposes of this section (in this section and section 56 referred to as a “tenant management co-operative”) may make an agreement with a landlord mentioned in section 11(1)(b) for the exercise by the co-operative of the landlord’s housing functions.
(2) The Scottish Ministers must approve a society, company or body of trustees for the purposes of this section if they are satisfied that it is generally suitable to carry out such functions.
(3) Where a tenant management co-operative applies to a landlord referred to in subsection (1) for agreement to the co-operative exercising, on such terms as the application may specify, all or part of the landlord’s housing functions, the landlord must make an agreement with the co-operative if it is satisfied that—
(a) the co-operative is approved under subsection (2),
(b) the co-operative will be able to exercise the functions specified in the proposal competently and efficiently, and
(c) so far as those functions relate to houses, the co-operative is representative of the tenants of those houses.
(4) Where a landlord refuses to make an agreement with a co-operative on the ground that it is not satisfied as to a matter mentioned in subsection (3)(b) or (c), the co-operative may appeal to the Scottish Ministers, who may confirm or reverse the landlord’s decision.
(5) Where the Scottish Ministers reverse the landlord’s decision, the landlord and the co-operative must make the agreement.
(6) Where the landlord and the co-operative are unable to agree the terms of the agreement, the co-operative may appeal to the Scottish Ministers who may determine the terms of the agreement.
(7) An agreement under this section may be made only with the approval of the Scottish Ministers, and such approval may be given subject to conditions.
(8) An agreement under this section does not affect the responsibility of the local authority landlord or registered social landlord for the exercise of its functions.
(1) An agreement under section 55 may be made in relation to—
(a) all or any part of the landlord’s housing functions,
(b) all or any part of the houses held by the landlord for the purposes of those functions.
(2) In that section and this section, references to the landlord’s housing functions are—
(a) in relation to a local authority landlord, references to the functions of the landlord—
(i) relating to land or any interest in land held by it for the purposes of Part I of the 1987 Act,
(ii) under sections 4 and 5 (power to provide furniture, board and laundry facilities) of that Act, in connection with any such land or interest,
(b) in relation to a registered social landlord, references to its housing activities within the meaning of section 83(3),
(c) in relation to a water authority or a sewerage authority, references to its functions in relation to the provision and management of houses.
(3) An agreement under section 55 between a tenant management co-operative and a local authority landlord may, without prejudice to any other enactment, include terms providing for the letting of land to the co-operative by the landlord for a period not exceeding 20 years.
(4) A local authority must continue to include in its housing revenue account houses on land included in an agreement under that section between a tenant management co-operative and a local authority landlord; and neither the making of the agreement nor any letting of land in pursuance of it is to be treated as a ground for the reduction, suspension or discontinuance of any Exchequer contribution or subsidy under section 202 of the 1987 Act.
(5) In subsection (4), “Exchequer contribution” has the meaning given in section 338(1) of the 1987 Act.
Housing (Scotland) Act 2001