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Tenancy Deposit Protection

My honourable friend the Minister for Housing and Planning has made the following Written Ministerial Statement. My right honourable friend the Deputy Prime Minister will publish, for public consultation, on 30 November, a paper discussing secondary legislation to implement tenancy deposit protection for tenants. During the passage of the Bill which became the Housing Act 2004 the Government introduced tenancy deposit protection provisions to safeguard deposits paid by tenants in relation to assured shorthold tenancies. The consultation paper examines the information requirements to be placed on landlords and the handling of deposits at the beginning and end of the tenancy. Copies of the paper are being sent to a wide range of interested parties, including local authorities, tenant representative groups, landlord and letting agent associations, and others with an interest in this issue. The closing date for responses is 1 February 2006. Copies of the paper will also be placed in the Libraries of the House, and will be available on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website at www.odpm.gov.uk. A summary of the responses to the consultation will be published on the ODPM website.