New Clause 14: Renters (Reform) Bill
New Clause 14 - Powers of Secretary of State in connection with Chapter 1 Clause 14
“(1) The Secretary of State may by regulations amend provision made by or under an Act passed before or later in the same session as this Act so that the provision has effect in relation to periodic assured tenancies in a manner that corresponds or is similar to the manner in which it had effect immediately before the commencement date in relation to—
(a) fixed term assured tenancies, or
(b) assured shorthold tenancies.
(2) The Secretary of State may by regulations amend provision made by or under an Act passed before or later in the same session as this Act so that the provision has effect, in relation to a ground in Schedule 2 to the 1988 Act as amended by this Act, in a manner that corresponds or is similar to the manner in which it had effect immediately before the commencement date in relation to any ground in that Schedule.
(3) The amendments that may be made under subsection (1)(b) include any to ensure that provision applying immediately before the commencement date in relation to notices under section 21 of the 1988 Act applies on and after that day, with or without modifications, in relation to notices under section 8 of that Act.
(4) The transitional provision that may be included in regulations under subsection (1) or (2) by virtue of section 112(1)(a) includes provision for pre-application instruments which the Secretary of State considers do not (or will not) operate appropriately as a result of any provision of the regulations to—
(i) have effect with specified modifications, or
(ii) cease to have effect (in whole or in part).
(5) For the purposes of subsection (4)—
(a) “pre-application instrument” means an agreement or other instrument made before the regulations come into force;
(b) the circumstances in which the Secretary of State may consider that a pre-application instrument does not operate appropriately as a result of regulations under subsection (1) or (2) include (but are not limited to) those in which—
(i) as a result of any provision of the regulations, provision made by the instrument is to any extent spent, obsolete, unnecessary or otherwise not of practical utility;
(ii) as a result of any provision of the regulations, it is unclear what the effect is of provision made by the instrument;
(iii) as a result of any provision of the regulations, a person may be placed in breach of obligations arising under the instrument or made subject to more burdensome obligations under the instrument;
(iv) the instrument makes direct or indirect reference to any enactment as it had effect before being amended by the regulations.
(6) Regulations made by virtue of subsection (4) must provide that they do not prevent—
(a) the variation or revocation of provision modified by the regulations, or
(b) the re-making of provision that has ceased to have effect as a result of the regulations.
(7) Regulations made by virtue of subsection (4) may apply to an instrument as it has effect in relation to times before the coming into force of the regulations but after the commencement date.
(8) Nothing in this Chapter limits the provision that may be made by regulations under this section.
(9) Nothing in this section limits the provision that may be made in regulations under Part 5.
(10) In this section—
“assured shorthold tenancy” is to be read in accordance with Part 1 of the 1988 Act as it had effect immediately before the commencement date;
“the commencement date” has the meaning given by section (Application of Chapter 1 of Part 1)(1)(a).” —(Jacob Young.)