Housing (Scotland) Act 1966
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1966 c. 49 |
| Year | 1966 |
Housing (Scotland) Act 1966
1966 CHAPTER 49
An Act to consolidate certain enactments relating to housing in Scotland, with the exception of certain provisions relating to financial matters.
[21st December 1966]
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:—
Part I
General Provisions as respects Local Authorities
1 Local authorities for purposes of this Act.
1. For the purposes of this Act the local authority shall be—
and the district of the local authority shall be the burgh or the county (excluding all burghs therein), as the case may be.
2 Power of local authority to appoint committee.
2. A local authority may appoint a committee, consisting of so many persons as they may think fit, for any purposes of this Act which in the opinion of the authority would be better regulated and managed by means of a committee:
Provided that a committee so appointed shall consist as to a majority of its members of members of the appointing authority, shall in no case be authorised to raise any money by rate or loan, and shall be subject to any regulations and restrictions which may be imposed by the appointing authority.
3 Local authority to discharge certain functions under Parts II and III in accordance with proposals approved by Secretary of State.
(1) It shall be the duty of every local authority to carry out their functions under Parts II and III of this Act, so far as those functions relate to dealing with houses within the district of the authority which appear to the authority to be unfit for human habitation and with any other houses within that district which are or in the opinion of the authority ought to be included in clearance areas, in accordance with proposals in that behalf submitted by them to the Secretary of State under section 1 of the Housing (Repairs and Rents) (Scotland) Act 1954 and approved by him before the commencement of this Act, subject to any amplifications or modifications made by subsequent proposals approved by the Secretary of State under this section.
(2) A local authority may at any time, and if directed by the Secretary of State shall within the period specified in the direction, submit further proposals for amplifying or modifying any proposals previously submitted by the authority under the said section 1 or this section and approved by the Secretary of State, and the Secretary of State may approve such further proposals with or without modifications.
(3) A copy of any proposals approved under this section shall be deposited at the offices of the local authority concerned, and a copy of any proposals so deposited under this subsection or under section 1(5) of the said Act of 1954 shall be open to inspection without charge during ordinary office hours.
4 Duty of local authority to inspect district.
(1) It shall be the duty of every local authority to cause an inspection of their district to be made from time to time with a view to ascertaining whether any house therein is unfit for human habitation.
(2) It shall be the duty of every local authority to cause an inspection of their district to be made from time to time with a view to ascertaining whether there is any area in the district which ought to be declared to be an improvement area under Part IV of this Act.
Part II
Provisions for securing the Repair, Maintenance and Sanitary Condition of Houses
Definition of standard of fitness
5 Determination of unfitness for human habitation.
(1) In determining for any of the purposes of this Act whether a house is unfit for human habitation regard shall be had to its condition in respect of the following matters:—
(a ) general state of repair;
(b ) structural stability;
(c ) freedom from dampness;
(d ) natural lighting;
(e ) air space;
(f ) ventilation;
(g ) adequacy and accessibility of water supply;
(h ) adequacy and accessibility of sanitary and other conveniences;
(i ) drainage;
(j ) condition of paving and drainage of courts, yards or passages;
(k ) facilities for storage, preparation and cooking of food and for the disposal of waste water;
and the house shall be determined to be unfit for human habitation if, and only if, it is so far defective in one or more of the said matters that it is not reasonably suitable for occupation in that condition.
(2) Subsection (1) of this section shall be without prejudice to section 17 of this Act.
(3) Any reference in any enactment to section 184(2) of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1950 shall be construed as a reference to this section.
Obligations as to repair of houses
6 Conditions to be implied on letting certain small houses.
(1) This section shall apply—
(a ) to a contract entered into before 31st July 1923 for letting for human habitation a house at a rent not exceeding sixteen pounds;
(b ) to a contract entered into on or after 31st July 1923 for letting for human habitation a house at a rent not exceeding twenty-six pounds;
but shall not apply to a contract for the letting by a local authority of any house purchased or retained by the authority under section 20 or section 40 of this Act for use for housing purposes.
(2) In any contract to which this section applies there shall, notwithstanding any stipulation to the contrary, be implied a condition that the house is at the commencement of the tenancy, and an undertaking that the house will be kept by the landlord during the tenancy, in all respects reasonably fit for human habitation:
Provided that the condition and the undertaking aforesaid shall not be implied when a house is let for a period of not less than three years upon the terms that it will be put by the lessee into a condition in all respects reasonably fit for human habitation. and the lease is not determinable at the option of either party before the expiration of three years.
(3) The landlord, or any person authorised by him in writing, may at reasonable times of the day, on giving twenty-four hours' notice in writing to the tenant or occupier, enter any premises in respect of which this section applies for the purpose of viewing the state and condition thereof.
(4) In this section—
(a ) the expression ‘landlord’ means any person who lets to a tenant for human habitation any house under any contract to which this section applies, and includes his successors in title; and
(b ) the expression ‘house’ includes part of a house.
7 Application of s. 6 to houses occupied by agricultural workers otherwise than as tenants.
(1) Notwithstanding any agreement to the contrary, where under any contract of employment of a workman employed in agriculture the provision of a house or part of a house for the occupation of the workman forms part of the remuneration of the workman, and the provisions of section 6 of this Act are inapplicable by reason only of the house or part of the house not being let to the workman, there shall be implied as part of the contract of employment the like condition and undertaking as would be implied under the said provisions if the house or part of the house were so let, and those provisions shall apply accordingly as if incorporated in this section, with the substitution of ‘employer’ for ‘landlord’ and such other modifications as may be necessary:
Provided that this section shall not affect the obligation of any person other than the employer to repair a house to which this section applies or any remedy for enforcing any such obligation.
(2) This section shall apply whether the contract of employment was entered into before or after the commencement of this Act.
8 Repairing obligations in short leases of houses.
(1) In any lease of a house, being a lease to which this section applies, there shall be implied a provision that the lessor will—
(a ) keep in repair the structure and exterior of the house (including drains, gutters and external pipes); and
(b ) keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the house—
(i) for the supply of water, gas and electricity, and for sanitation (including basins, sinks, baths and sanitary conveniences but not, except as aforesaid, fixtures, fittings and appliances for making use of the supply of water, gas or electricity), and
(ii) for space heating or heating water;
and any provision that the lessee will repair the premises (including any that he will put in repair or deliver up in repair, or will paint, point or render the premises, or pay money in lieu of repairs by the lessee or on account of repairs by the lessor) shall be of no effect so far as it relates to any of the matters mentioned in paragraphs (a ) and (b ) of this subsection.
(2) The provision implied by this section (hereinafter referred to as ‘the implied repairs provision’) shall not be construed as requiring the lessor—
(a )...
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