Landlords sceptical on new register

25/11/2009

A government minister has promised to crack down on rogue landlords in order to protect vulnerable tenants.

Speaking at the annual conference of the National Landlords Association (NLA), minister with responsibility for the private-rented sector Ian Austin discussed proposals for a register of landlords.

Introducing new measures of this kind could make it harder for "cowboy" landlords to charge rip-off prices, as prospective tenants could check their names on the register to make sure they were reputable.

The MP suggested that many aspects of the legislation were still up for debate in Westminster.

However, representatives of landlords expressed scepticism about the extra rules.

Mr Austin said: "I can't flick a switch in Whitehall and expect the whole system to change overnight. It's important we get the legislation right rather than rushing it through."

NLA chairman David Salusbury commented: "It is quite clear that even the government do not know how a landlord register will find those rogue landlords who work so hard at keeping themselves under the radar.

"It is this small minority which brings the whole private-rented sector into disrepute and the NLA is determined to ensure that government measures focus on this and not on over-burdening the law-abiding majority."

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