Housing and Regeneration Bill

moved Amendment No. 109ZA: 109ZA: Clause 191, page 81, line 31, leave out ““complaints by tenants against landlords”” and insert ““differences between landlords and tenants”” The noble Earl said: There are three amendments in this group in my name—Amendments Nos. 109ZA, 109ZB and 109ZC. They are fairly straightforward. Amendment No. 109ZA leaves out, "““complaints by tenants against landlords””," and inserts, "““differences between landlords and tenants””." There may be troublesome tenants against whom the landlord has a genuine grievance. The Bill should recognise that it is not just landlords who will always be in the wrong. Our amendment is a little less prescriptive, inserting ““differences”” rather than ““complaints””. This has a wider interpretation, although it is hard to think of any major differences between the parties that are not formalised in the form of a complaint. However, the point is that the process should be a two-way street. Amendment No. 109ZB leaves out ““or control””. It is one thing for tenants to influence a management of their accommodation but quite another for them to have control over it. If tenants were granted control, it would bypass the normal structures of management and render management impotent and somewhat pointless. Likewise, in Amendment No. 109ZC, we remove ““and environment””. The phrase has a wide meaning indeed. What exactly does it mean? Does it mean the immediate surroundings, the wider surroundings, the ambience, the climate? Leaving it out would restrict the subsection to enabling tenants to influence the management of their accommodation. That is easily definable and less open to misinterpretation than the wording in the Bill. I beg to move.