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Scotland battles landlord regulations

Adam Williams
Written By:
Adam Williams
Posted:
Updated:
28/09/2015

New regulations which will require landlords to check the immigration status of their tenants should not be extended to Scotland, several organisations have suggested.

Under the UK government’s Immigration Bill, landlords will be forced to check whether prospective tenants are legally allowed to reside in the country.

Landlords would also be forced to evict tenants whose entitlement to live in the UK changes.

However, the Chartered Institute of Housing in Scotland has led calls for the laws to be restricted to other parts of the UK and not apply to Scotland.

At present the UK government is expected to extend the bill’s rules to Scotland using secondary legislation.

Earlier this month Scottish housing minister Margaret Burgess said she had written to the UK government with issues over the bill.

The Chartered Institute of Housing has also raised concerns that the bill could force more people into homelessness and increase discrimination in the rental sector.

Annie Mauger, director of the Chartered Institute of Housing in Scotland, said the legislation could prove problematic for landlords and letting agents.

“We have consistently voiced concerns about the potential negative impact of this legislation, particularly for documented migrants seeking to access housing in the private rented sector,” he said.

“We believe it conflicts with the Scottish Government’s objective to promote fairness and equality in Scottish housing policy and to increase security for the growing number of tenants in the private rented sector.

“The Scottish Parliament must be fully consulted before any moves to extend the proposed eviction measures to Scotland.”


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