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Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Bill

It is a pleasure to follow my hon. Friend the Member for Staffordshire Moorlands (Karen Bradley). I join her in congratulating my hon. Friend the Member for Watford (Richard Harrington) on having selected this topic for his private Member’s Bill and on the way in which he introduced it today, giving the House the benefit of a detailed, coherent and compelling account of the background to the Bill.

My hon. Friend the Member for Watford spoke with characteristic modesty, which is a very attractive trait but does not give an entirely accurate impression in his case. He spoke of leaving a small footnote. Having

known him for many years, I would say he is somebody who finds it impossible to leave a small footnote behind him. He also spoke, again with modesty, about his academic legal career. I can tell the House from my own knowledge that that career encompassed at least one very rare achievement. His legal knowledge was no doubt reflected in how he introduced the Bill. Suffice it to say that he has convinced the House—he has certainly convinced me, as a sponsor of the Bill, that it deals with a real problem that is also widespread, although the hon. Member for Derby North (Chris Williamson) and others made the very good point that that is no reflection on the vast majority of social housing tenants, who are decent, honest people to whom it does not occur to carry out an illegal activity such as sub-letting.

It is as well to bear in mind that, as the hon. Gentleman mentioned, the position not only of existing social housing tenants, but of the people who are in many ways the worst victims of such fraudulent activity—those on housing waiting lists, of whom there are a large number in my constituency, whose position I will deal with in a moment. There is a widespread view among housing associations and in the sector that this activity is not sufficiently covered by existing criminal sanctions. Indeed, there seems to be some doubt whether existing criminal law covers it. In those circumstances my hon. Friend is right to introduce the Bill, which makes it a definite criminal offence, avoiding the element of doubt whether the law captures the mischief in question. This is a definite measure aimed specifically at that mischief, and it should leave nobody in doubt about it.

I would like to know whether my hon. Friend the Minister envisages publicising this measure so that people will become aware of it and its deterrent effect on those who might become involved in this activity can be maximised. There is one other point on which I invite my hon. Friend, if he feels able to at this stage. The Bill would introduce two different offences, the first of which is dealt with more seriously than the second. The offence set out in clause 1(2) provides, on summary conviction, for a fine and possibly a prison sentence and, on conviction on indictment, for imprisonment of a term not exceeding two years, whereas the offence set out in clause 1(1) is triable summarily only and does not provide for a sentence of imprisonment. I guess the offence under subsection (2) is dealt with more seriously because it involves dishonesty. I invite my hon. Friend to comment, if he feels able to do so, on what sorts of factors he thinks prosecutors would take into account in deciding whether to bring a charge under subsection (2), rather than subsection (1), when they feel that dishonesty is present.

The impact of the Bill is clear and I hope that it will have a deterrent effect, as my hon. Friend the Member for Watford has envisaged. Certainly everyone in my constituency with whom I have spoken about the Bill thinks that it is a good idea. There is huge pressure on social housing in Hertsmere, as there has been for a long time under Governments of both descriptions. My hon. Friend pointed out that this type of offence is more prevalent in London than elsewhere in the country because of the particular pressure on housing there and the high market rents. The same considerations apply in my constituency. I guess that this offence is taking place in my constituency and hope that the Bill will go someway towards tackling it.

As I mentioned, the people I think of in particular in this regard are those who are in housing need but are on the waiting lists that my local authority and housing association keep, many of whom have families. The local authority and housing association determine those cases on the basis of greatest need, whereas that consideration does not arise in the case of those who are sub-letting their properties. We need to take these needs into account. I saw a case only this week involving a large family with small children in great need—I will say no more about it than that—and there were compelling educational reasons for keeping the family in the locality. I am sure that all Members deal with such cases. It is the people on housing waiting lists waiting for one of these valuable social housing tenancies to come their way whom the Bill will benefit the most, especially as there appears to be a substantial number of such properties that are not getting into the right hands and have been diverted away from social housing, and which are also, by the way, causing significant problem for local authorities.

I think that my hon. Friend’s Bill deals with a real mischief and meets a real need. I think that it is an excellent Bill and am happy to promote it. I congratulate those on the Opposition Front Bench on the attitude they have taken towards the Bill itself, if I may put it like that, and I hope that it proceeds to Committee and receives proper consideration and eventually passes into law.

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