HOUSING LEGISLATION BIBLIOGRAPHY

Charter of Liberties 1100.

Magna Carta 1215.
This is the original charter that was signed by the Angevin Plantagenet King John, (Lackland) at Runnymede. It essentially flawed and shortlived. Section 52 took the power of final arbiteration over matters concerning land ownership from King John and vested it with a panel of 25 barons. All power remained vested in land ownership arguably until the industrial revolution, arguably the 1880s when the aristocracy began to crumble? - maybe never. So effectively by signing the original Charter King John signed away all power within the shores of the English Kingdom - which until that time had been largely based in France. Ultimately power lay with the Pope (Innocent III) who was not having this. Civil War followed almost immediately, then the death of King John (1216) and ammended versions of the Charter in 1216, 1217 and 1225 (under Henry III).

Magna Carta 1216.
Slightly ammended from the original but effectively also set the age of majority as 21 Years.

Magna Carta 1217.
Signed by King Henry III

Magna Carta 1225.
According to Danziger and Gillingham this is the version that entered the statute Book.

Magna Carta 1297 Ch 9
King Edward I, Longshanks was forced to confirm the text of 1225
Search for "Magna Carta" on the current 'Statute Book' on the "UK Statute Law Database" of the Ministry of Justice and you will find that it is this version for which certain clauses are still in force, namely:-
Clause 9 THE City of London shall have all the old Liberties and Customs [which it hath been used to have]. Moreover We will and grant, that all other Cities, Boroughs, Towns, and the Barons of the Five Ports, and all other Ports, shall have all their Liberties and free Customs.
Clause 29 NO Freeman shall be taken or imprisoned, or be disseised of his Freehold, or Liberties, or free Customs, or be outlawed, or exiled, or any other wise destroyed; nor will We not pass upon him, nor condemn him, but by lawful judgment of his Peers, or by the Law of the Land. We will sell to no man, we will not deny or defer to any man either Justice or Right.
As with all other Acts shown on that website there is annotation explaining which Acts superseded the other clauses. Partly this was the Statute Law Revision Act 1863 Ch 125 which in turn has disappeared off the Statute Book, presumably repealed by the Statute Law Revision (substituted Enactments) Act 1876 which in turn was apparently repealed 5th November 1993.

Act of Supremacy 1534.
This displaced the Pope as head of the church of England and established King Henry VIII there. This cleared the way for the King to use his rights within the feudal system to evict many of the monasteries from the property that they had the use of and to install the families that by and large remained the Aristocrat landowners until they inturn started to loose their positions from the 1980s,

Habeas Corpus Act 1679.
This Act did not bring the ancient right of Habeas Corpus into being but merely confirmed it. It was enacted by King Charles II as part of his affirmation of the Reformation of the Monarchy

Vagrancy Act 1824. Still in force.
Makes it a crime (punishable by a short prison sentence) for individuals to refuse to maintain themselves and their families (including children under 16 as defined by the 1933 Act), by leaving a place to which they were removed, or by being an unlicensed pedlar, a prostitute or a beggar.

1932

Prescription Act 1832.
Previously many rights had to be demonstrable as having run since 'time immemorial'in many cases considered to include and denote the whole period of time from the Reign of King Richard the First, this Act introduced certain fixed numbers of years for instance 20 years for a Right to Light

Representation of the People Act 1832
Extended the franchise but specifically disenfranchised women. Generally referred to as either the "First Refom Act" or the "Great Reform Act"

Representation of the People Act 1867
Extended the franchise yt further but still no votes for women. Generally referred to as either the "Second Refom Act".

Housing and Town Planning etc. Act 1919. (Addison Act).
Introduced Exchequer subsidies for local authority houses.

Land Settlement (Facilities) Act 1919 Ch 59
An Act to make further provision for the acquisition of land for the purposes of small holdings, reclamation, and drainage, to amend the enactments relating to small holdings and allotments, and otherwise to facilitate land settlement

Housing Act 1923 (Chamberlain Act).
Introduced new subsidy to encourage private house building.

1925

Law of Property Act. 1925 (England & Wales only)
Minors (under-18s) cannot hold a legal estate in land, such as a tenancy. A young person under 18 however can occupy the premises as a licensee, but does not legally hold the tenancy - because of his/her minority the grant of a tenancy cannot pass legal interest to a young person.

Settled Land Act 1925 (England & Wales only).
This Act provides that the legal interest in the land - the tenancy - is vested in trustees to be held for the benefit of the young person. If a specific trust is not established then the landlord is deemed to hold the tenancy on trust for the young person. This may cause difficulties (see Housing Act 1985).

1930 Housing Act (Greenwood Act).
Aimed to promote slum clearance through system of subsidised rehousing. Allowed LAs to operate rent rebates.

1933 Housing (Financial Provisions) Act.
Withdrew subsidies for all new housing with the exception of slum clearances. Local authorities required to produce 5 year slum clearance plan.

Housing Act 1935
New subsidies introduced to relieve overcrowding. Local authorities required to operate one Housing Revenue Account, and permitted to pool rent and subsidies.

Lands Tribunal Act 1949 Ch 42
Established Lands Tribunals, largely to deal with compensation cases concerning compulsory purchase and to to amend the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act 1919

Clean Air Act 1956
Introduced in response to the Great London Smog of December 1952, This Act aimed to control domestic sources of smoke pollution by introducing smokeless zones. In these areas, smokeless fuels had to be burnt.

Rights of Light Act 1959
Main legislation in force covering the Rights of Light that come from common law as modified by the Prescription Act of 1832 but further modified by the Local Land Charges Act 1975 (see below).

Leasehold Reform Act 1967 Ch 88

Clean Air Act 1968
Introduced the basic principle for the use of tall chimneys for industries burning coal, liquid or gaseous fuels. At the time of this legislation it was recognised that smoke pollution could be controlled, but that sulphur dioxide removal was generally impracticable. Hence, the higher the chimney, the better the dispersal of the air pollution.

European Communities Act 1972Ch 68
(Downloadable)

Local Government Act 1972 Ch 70
(Downloadable) Sets out the running of many local authority committees and procedures. This Act was subsequently amended by the Local Authorities (Access to Information) Act 1985

Fair Trading Act 1973 Ch 70
(Downloadable) Set up the Office of Fair Trading as a "non-ministerial government department established by statute"

Local Land Charges Act 1975 Ch 76
(On the UK Statute Law Database)

1977

Rentcharges Act 1977 Ch 30
(On the UK Statute Law Database)

Rent Act 1977 Ch 46
(On the UK Statute Law Database)

Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977
(This is available from a non Government web site )

1980

. Housing Act 1980 Chapter 51 (Not available as a Download)
One of the first Acts passed under the Thatcher Regime. Introduced the Right to Buy. Sale of council houses dates back to the turn of the 20th Century.

Limitation Act 1980 Ch 58
(On the UK Statute Law Database)

1985

Local Government (Access to Information) Act 1985 Chapter 43
This was little known piece of legislation that used to allow members of the public access to meetings and papers. It amends the Local Governemnt 1972 by adding additional clauses.(available here as origianally published (download))

. Housing Act 1985 Chapter 68 (Not available as a Download)

. Housing and Planning Act 1986 Chapter 63 (Not available as a Download)
Section 16 enables the Secretary of State to fund advisors for tenants, hence section 16 agents or advisors - Independent tenants advisors (ITAs).

Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 Chapter 31
The grounds for seeking a variation of a lease are set out in Part IV

(This marks the approximate point beyond which documents are additionally available as downloads from the Office of Public sector Information)

. Housing Act 1988 Chapter 50 (Available as a Download)


. Local Government and Housing Act 1989 Chapter 42 (Available as a Download)
Sections 74 to 88 established that the Housing Revenue Account should be Ring fenced.

1993

Clean Air Act 1993 Chapter 11 (Available as a Download)
To protect against high concentrations of air pollutants at ground level, which could create health effects, the Clean Air Act 1993 allows Local Authorities to control the height of chimneys serving industrial processes.

Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 Chapter 28 (Available as a Download)

1994

The Secure Tenants of Local Housing Authorities (Right to Repair) Regulations 1994
Statutory Instrument 1994 No. 133
This crucial document sets out how long tenants should have to wait before they get certain categories of repairs.

The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1994 Statutory Instrument 1994 No. 3159
(Available as a Download)

1995

Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 Chapter 10 (HECA) (Available as a Download)
Sections 2 (2) conferred on local housing authorities a duty to prepare a report on measures necessary to result in siginificant improvements in residential energy efficiency in its area.

1996

The Lands Tribunal (Fees) Rules 1996 statutory Instrument 1996 no. 1021 (Available as a Download)

The Lands Tribunal Rules 1996 statutory Instrument 1996 no. 1022 (Available as a Download)

Energy Conservation Act 1996 Chapter 38 (Available as a Download)
Ammended HECA by extending it to Houses in Multiple Ocupation (HMOs) and house boats.

Trusts of Land and Appotionment of Trustees Act 1996 Chapter 47 (Available as a Download)

Housing Act 1996 Chapter 52 (Available as a Download)

1997

The Local Authorities (Capital Finance) Regulations 1997 Statutory Instrument 1997 No.319
Refers to the Local Government and Housing Act 1989
Regulation 104 introduced the "Exchange sale scheme" whereby local authorities could aid leaseholders who need to move by buying back one lease in exchange for another.

1998

Audit Commission Act 1998 Chapter 18

Data protection Act 1998 Chapter 29

Competition Act 1998 Chapter 41

Human Rights Act 1998 Chapter 42

The Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 No. 2451

1999

Local Government Act 1999 Chapter 27
Section 1 defines "Best Value Authorities"
Section 3 defines "Best Value Duties"

Explanatory Notes to the Local Government Act 1999 Chapter 27

Water Industry Act 1999 Chapter 56

Statutory Instrument 1999 293 The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (England and Wales) Regulations 1999

Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1148)

Water Supply (Water Fittings)(Ammendment) Regulations 1999 1999 No. 1506

1999 2083 Consumer Protection: The Unfair terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999
NB. Ammended 2001.

2000

Campaign for Freedom of Information: Briefing for Second Reading of the Local Government Bill 2000, 2000 April 11

Local Government Act 2000 Chapter 22
Section 2 gives local authorities the power to promote "Well Being"

Explanatory notes to Local Government Act 2000

Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000 Chapter 31
Section 2 (1) gave authorities the duty to draw up a strategy for dealing with fuel poverty in their areas.

Freedom of Information Act 2000 Chapter 36

2001

Statutory Instrument 2001 No. 1186 The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts (Amendment) Regulations 2001

2002

Explanatory Notes to Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 Chapter 15

Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 Chapter 15

Enterprise Act 2002 Chapter 40
This Act largely replaced the Fair Trading Act 1973, established the Office of Fair Trading to replace the statutory office of the Director of Fair Trading and made use of a Cartel a criminal offence.

2003

Finance Act 2003 Ch 14
Reworked Stamp Duty into Stamp Duty Land Tax

The Local Government Act 2003 Ch 26
Section 1 Introduces prudential borrowing.
Section 93 Introduces the power to charge for discretionary services that promote "Well Being".

Explanatory Notes to The Local Government Act 2003 Ch 26

Water Act 2003 Ch 37

Statutory Instrument 2003 No. 43 The Local Authorities (Capital Finance) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2003 2003 January 15th

Statutory Instrument 2003 No. 2760 The Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Land Tax (Variation of the Finance Act 2003) Regulations 2003 2003 October 30th

Statutory Instrument 2003 No. 2816 The Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Land Tax (Variation of the Finance Act 2003) (N0.2) Regulations 2003 2003 November 5th

Statutory Instrument 2003 No. 2868 The Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty Land Tax (Consequential Amendment of Enactments) Regulations 2003 2003 November 10th.

Statutory Instrument 2003 No. 2914 The Stamp Duty Land Tax (Amendment of Schedule 5 to the Finance Act 2003) Regulations 2003 2003 November 13th.

Statutory Instrument 2003 No. 3293 The Stamp Duty Land Tax (Amendment of Schedule 4 to the Finance Act 2003) Regulations 2003 2003 December 18th

2004

Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 Chapter 5
The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act of 2004 introduced a new two-tiered plan system in England operating at regional level (Regional Spatial Strategies) and at local level (Local Development Frameworks).

Statutory Instrument 2004 No. 1206: Taxes: The Stamp Duty Land Tax (Amendment of Part 4 of the Finance Act 2003) (no.2 ) Regulations 2004

2005

2005 September Guidance on unfair terms in tenancy agreements

2005 November 2nd. The Water Supply Licence (Prescribed Water Fittings Requirements) Regulations 2005 2005 No.3077

2006

2006 January 31st. Statutory Instrument 2006 No. 5: The Public Contracts Regulations 2006

2006 March 31st. Statutory Instrument 2006 No. 521: The Local Authorities (Capital Finance and Accounting) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2006

2006 March 31st. Statutory Instrument 2006 No. 875: The Stamp Duty Land Tax (Amendment to the Finance Act 2003) Regulations 2006

2006 March 31st. Statutory Instrument 2006 No. 3295: The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment)(Amendment Regulations 2006

2006 December 11th. Explanatory Memorandum to Statutory Instrument 2006 No. 3295: The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment)(Amendment Regulations 2006

2006 June 7th. A Decent Home: Definition and guidance on implementation,

Strong and Prosperous Communities - The Local Government White Paper from C&LG October 2006

Regulatory Impact Assessment: Proposals to introduce a Code for Sustainable Homes 13 December 2006.

2007

2007 February 20th.
Statutory Instrument 2007 No. 458: The Stamp Duty and Stamp Duty reserve Tax (Extension of Exceptions Relating to Recognised Exchanges) Amendment Regulations 2007 PDF

2007 March 2th.
Regulatory Impact Assessment: Energy Performance of Buildings Directive - Articles 7-10

2007 March 29th.
Circular 02/07: The Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and inspections) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007

2007 March 29th.
Statutory Instrument 2007 No. 991: The Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007 PDF

2007 March 29th.
Explanatory Memorandum to The Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007

2007 April 16th.
Statutory Instruments 2007 No. 1256 (C. 55) landlord and tenant, england Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 (Commencement No.6) (England) Order 2007.
Brings the Commonhold & Leasehold reform Act 2002 Section 153 into operation. Section 153 requires a landlord to send a summary of a tenant's right and obligations in relation to service charges with service charge demands. This commencement Order also includes a list of the commencement orders relating to CLARA that precede it. Provision coming into force on 1st October 2007

2007 May 3rd.
Statutory Instrument 2007 No. 1385 Stamp Duty Land Tax The Finance Act 2003, Section 66 (Prescribed Statutory Provisions) Order 2007

2007 October 23rd
Sustainable Communities Act 2007 CHAPTER 23

2007 October 30th.
Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 2007 CHAPTER 28

2007 November 23rd.
Statutory Instrument 2007 No. 3302: The Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007

2007 December 6th.
Statutory Instrument 2007 No. 3437: The Stamp Duty Land Tax (Zero-Carbon Homes Relief) Regulations 2007

2008

2008 February 1st
Sustainable Communities Act 2007: A Guide

2008 February 18th
Closing date 12 May 2008 Sustainable Communities Act 2007: Consultation on Draft Regulations and Statutory Guidance

2008 April 1st
The Local Authorities (Functions and Responsibilities) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2008: 2008 No. 516

2008 April 6th
The Housing (Right to Buy)(Service Charges)(Amendment) (England) Order 2008: 2008 No. 533

2008 April 8th
Statutory Instrument 2008 No. 625 The Local Government (Parishes and Parish Councils) (England) Regulations 2008

2008 May 9th
Commission for Rural Communities Our response to Sustainable Communities Act 2007: Draft regulations and statutory guidance

2008 May 12th
Sustainable Communities Act statutory guidance consultation - LGA

2008 July 9th
Sustainable Communities Act 2007 Response to Consultation on Regulations and Statutory Guidance

2008 July 22th.
Housing and Regeneration Act 2008

2008 September 22th.
Statutory Instruments 2008 No. 2358
The Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 (Commencement No.1 and Transitional Provision) Order 2008

2008 October 1st
Statutory Instruments 2008 No. 2361
The Housing (Right to Manage) (England) Regulations 2008.

2008 October 1st
Residents' choice: Guidance on tenant management and other options supported through the Tenant Empowerment Programme.

2008 #####
Statutory Instruments 2008 No. [000]
The Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 (Consequential Provisions) Order 2008.
As`at 2008 October In draft format only

Preparing Britain for the Future: The Government's Draft Legislative Programme 2008/09
This includes the "Community empowerment housing and economic regeneration bill" the purpose of which is to "create greater opportunities for community and individual empowerment, reform local and regional governance arrangements to promote economic regeneration and continue the Government’s programme of housing reform" So watch this space!!

Consultations

1998

Buying back ex-council flats and houses: Consultation paper
Consultation closed 1998 September 30th.

2004

Commonhold and Leasehold reform Act 2002 - A Consultation Paper on Accounting for Leaseholders' monies and summaries of tenants rights and obligations. June 2004

2005

ODPM News Release 2005/0156 Accounting for service Charge Monies: The Way Forward

2007

Commonhold and Leasehold reform Act 2002 A Consultation Paper on Regular Statements of Account and Designated Client Accounts July 2007

2008

Regular statements of Account and Designated Client Accounts - Consultation - Summary of responses 2008 January 16th

Parliamentary debate and politician's speeches on housing

2002 January 8th. Barry Gardiner MP Speaking in the House of Commons prior to the Committee Stage of the passage of the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill

2006 June 7th. Ruth Kelly MP Decent Homes and Mixed Communities

2006 July Select Committee on Communities and Local Government Committee Written Evidence Memorandum From Pauline Walton, Norwich Leaseholders' Association

2008 February 22nd. Simon Hughes MP Debate on the Second Reading of his Private Members Bill entitled "Leasehold Reform Bill" now adjourned until Friday 2008 June 13th. For progress on the Bill and to download the original bill see here

Leasehold Reform Bill 2007-08 Private member's Bill introduced by Simon Hughes MP for North Southwark and Bermondsey. for progress see here


updated 2008 December 28th