Housing (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill Stage 2 Amendments
As anticipated, Scottish Government has lodged two amendments at Stage 2 of the Housing (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill. These were to take account of recommendations made by the Local Government and Communities Committee report at Stage 1.
SFHA has been liaising closely with Scottish Government on the Bill, and was aware that these proposed amendments would be forthcoming, and is relaxed that they will have no negative impact on the sector or the Bill's progression through Parliament. The Bill is intended to reverse the ONS' reclassification of RSLs in Scotland.
The amendments concern Sections 8 and 9 of the Bill. Section 8 allows for Scottish Government to make further changes to the powers of the SHR, and is largely a "just in case" provision in the unlikely event that the legislation is not enough to persuade the ONS to reverse its decision. Section 9 concerns the perceived level of influence local authorities may have over RSLs, and gives Scottish Government powers to reduce this through regulations. These regulations will be drafted once the Bill receives Royal Assent.
The amendment proposed makes both Section 8 and 9 "sunset provisions" whereby they will only apply for three years from when the legislation is enacted. This is to reflect that these provisions will no longer be required if the ONS reverses its decision as anticipated following the enactment of the legislation and subsequent regulations.
More details of the amendments are available on the Scottish Government website here: