Housing Rents and Subsidies Act 1975

JurisdictionUK Non-devolved
Citation1975 c. 6


Housing Rentsand Subsidies Act 1975

1975 CHAPTER 6

An Act to repeal certain provisions of the Housing Finance Act 1972; to make further provision as to rents; to introduce new housing subsidies for local authorities and new town corporations and abolish certain existing subsidies; to render certain housing associations whose rules restrict membership to tenants or prospective tenants and preclude the grant or assignment of tenancies to persons other than members eligible for housing association grant and revenue deficit grant under the Housing Act 1974; to make minor amendments of certain enactments relating to housing; and for connected purposes.

[25th February 1975]

Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—

Rents in public sector

Rents in public sector

S-1 Rents for public sector dwellings.

1 Rents for public sector dwellings.

(1) Parts V and VI of the Housing Finance Act 1972 of the Housing Act 1957 (general responsibility for local authority's houses) the words ‘subject to the provisions of the Housing Finance Act 1972’ are also repealed, but without prejudice to the duties to operate a rent rebate scheme and a rent allowance scheme imposed by Part II of the Housing Finance Act 1972 .

(2) After section 113(1) of the Housing Act 1957 (conditions to be observed in management of local authority's houses) there shall be inserted the following subsection:—

(1A) A local authority shall from time to time review rents and make such changes, either of rents generally or of particular rents, as circumstances may require.’.

(3) A local authority may make provision for a working balance in their Housing Revenue Account which is no larger than is reasonably necessary having regard to all the circumstances, but save as aforesaid they shall not make provision for a surplus in that account.

Subsidy

Subsidy

S-2 Housing subsidy.

2 Housing subsidy.

(1) A subsidy, to be known as ‘housing subsidy’, and consisting of five elements, shall be payable to local authorities and new town corporations, in accordance with Part I of Schedule 1 to this Act.

(2) The five elements of housing subsidy are—

(a ) the basic element,

(b ) the new capital costs element,

(c ) the supplementary financing element,

(d ) the special element, and

(e ) the high costs element.

(3) Housing subsidy shall be payable for the credit of a local authority's Housing Revenue Account and a new town corporation's housing account.

S-3 Modified rent rebate subsidy.

3 Modified rent rebate subsidy.

(1) A subsidy, to be known as ‘modified rent rebate subsidy’, shall be payable to local authorities and new town corporations for the year 1975-76 and for any later year.

(2) Modified rent rebate subsidy shall be payable for the credit of a local authority's Housing Revenue Account and a new town corporation's housing account.

(3) An authority's or corporation's modified rent rebate subsidy for any year shall be an amount equal to 75 per cent. of their standard amount of rent rebates for the year.

(4) A local authority shall make a rate fund contribution for each year of an amount equal to the total of—

(a ) 25 per cent. of their standard amount of rent rebates for the year, and

(b ) the amount, if any, by which the rent rebates granted by them for the year exceed the said standard amount, and

(c ) their costs for the year of administering their rebate scheme under Part II of the Housing Finance Act 1972 .

S-4 Expanding towns subsidy.

4 Expanding towns subsidy.

(1) A subsidy, to be known as ‘expanding towns subsidy’, shall be payable to a receiving authority for the year 1975-76, and also, subject to subsection (3) below, for any later year, in respect of their qualifying dwellings.

(2) Expanding towns subsidy shall be payable for the credit of a receiving authority's Housing Revenue Account.

(3) Expanding towns subsidy in respect of any dwelling shall be paid for ten years, namely the year in which that dwelling, or another dwelling which has become available as the result of the provision of that dwelling, is let for the first time to a qualifying person, and the nine years immediately following that year.

(4) Subject to subsections (1) to (3) above, the amount of expanding towns subsidy payable to any receiving authority and the circumstances in which and conditions subject to which it is to be payable shall be determined by the Secretary of State.

(5) In this section—

‘qualifying dwellings’ means dwellings provided by a receiving authority for letting in the course of a scheme of town development which in the opinion of the Secretary of State is substantial;

‘qualifying person’, in relation to a scheme of town development, means a person from the area of a sending authority or a person who is a member of a class of persons whose accommodation in the area of the receiving authority is considered by the Secretary of State to be necessary for the success of the scheme; and

‘sending authority’ means a local authority so designated by the Secretary of State for the purposes of this section in relation to a receiving authority.

S-5 Transitional town development subsidy.

5 Transitional town development subsidy.

(1) Subject to subsection (4) below, a subsidy, to be known as ‘transitional town development subsidy’, shall be payable for the year 1975-76 and also for any later year to a sending authority to whom town development subsidy under section 9 of the Housing Finance Act 1972 was payable for the year 1974-75.

(2) Transitional town development subsidy shall be payable for the credit of a sending authority's general rate fund.

(3) Subject to subsection (4) below, the amount for any year of transitional town development subsidy payable to a sending authority shall be the amount of town development subsidy payable to that authority for the year 1974-75.

(4) The Secretary of State may reduce or discontinue a sending authority's transitional town development subsidy, if any dwelling in respect of which it is payable—

(a ) has been demolished;

(b ) has been disposed of by the receiving authority;

(c ) is not fit to be used, or is not being used, for letting as a dwelling; or

(d ) in any other circumstances which he considers relevant.

(5) The Secretary of State shall have power to determine for the purposes of subsection (4) above—

(a ) the circumstances in which a dwelling is to be treated as having been demolished or disposed of;

(b ) the circumstances in which a dwelling is to be treated as not fit to be used, or as not being used, for letting as a dwelling;

(c ) in which circumstances other than those mentioned in paragraphs (a ) to (c ) of subsection (4) above an authority's transitional town development subsidy is to be reduced or discontinued; and

(d ) the method by which any calculation is to be made;

and the power conferred by paragraph (b ) above shall also include power to determine what constitutes letting as a dwelling.

(6) Where transitional town development subsidy is payable, the sending authority shall for each year pay to the receiving authority, for the credit of the receiving authority's general rate fund, four times the amount of the sending authority's transitional town development subsidy for that year attributable to dwellings of the receiving authority which are available in that year for tenants from the sending authority.

S-6 Eligibility for housing association grant and revenue deficit grant.

6 Eligibility for housing association grant and revenue deficit grant.

6. The fact that a housing association is a society registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965and that its rules restrict membership to persons who are tenants or prospective tenants of the association and preclude the grant or assignment of tenancies to persons other than members shall not render it ineligible for housing association grant under section 29 of the Housing Act 1974or for revenue deficit grant under section 32 of that Act.

Private sector rents and tenancies

Private sector rents and tenancies

S-7 Phasing of rent increases for private sector housing.

7 Phasing of rent increases for private sector housing.

(1) Where the rent of a dwelling-house qualifies for phasing under this Act—

(a ) a notice of increase of the rent for any statutory period beginning during the period of delay imposed by Schedule 2 to this Act and after the coming into force of this section may increase it to the extent permitted by that Schedule;

(b ) the rent for any contractual period beginning during the period of delay and after the coming into force of this section shall not exceed the amount to which the rent could have been increased in accordance with that Schedule for a statutory period beginning at the same time.

(2) A notice of increase which purports to increase rent which qualifies for phasing under this Act further than permitted by Schedule 2 to this Act shall have effect to increase it to the extent so permitted but no further.

(3) The rent of a dwelling-house qualifies for phasing under this Act if—

(a ) it is registered; and

(b ) the present phasing provisions do not apply to it; and

(c ) the tenancy is a regulated tenancy which—

(i) was subsisting at the date of the coming into force of this section; or

(ii) was subsisting at the date of registration; or

(iii) was not subsisting at the date of registration but was granted after that date to a person who, at the date when it was granted, was the tenant under a previous regulated tenancy of the dwelling-house or a person who might succeed the tenant as a statutory tenant.

(4) In subsection (3)(b ) above ‘the present phasing provisions’ means—

(a ) ...

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