Session 2012 - 13
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Other Bills before Parliament


 
 

21

 

House of Commons

 
 

Wednesday 24 October 2012

 

Public Bill Committee

 

New Amendments handed in are marked thus Parliamentary Star

 

Parliamentary Star - whiteAmendments which will comply with the required notice period at their next appearance

 

Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Bill


 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

1

 

Clause  1,  page  1,  line  2,  leave out ‘in England’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

2

 

Clause  1,  page  1,  line  13,  leave out ‘in England’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

3

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  line  10,  after ‘P’, insert ‘or to another person to be held for P’s

 

benefit’.

 


 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

4

 

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  19,  leave out ‘in England’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

5

 

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  27,  leave out ‘in England’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

6

 

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  36,  after ‘housing’, insert ‘or a registered social landlord’.


 
 

Public Bill Committee: 24 October 2012                  

22

 

Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Bill, continued

 
 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

7

 

Clause  2,  page  3,  line  7,  after ‘P’, insert ‘or to another person to be held for P’s

 

benefit’.

 


 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

8

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  37,  leave out subsection (6).

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

9

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  40,  leave out ‘Subsections (5) and (6) also apply’ and insert

 

‘Subsection (5) also applies’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

10

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  41,  leave out ‘they’ and insert ‘it’.

 


 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

11

 

Clause  4,  page  4,  line  1,  after ‘offence’, insert ‘in relation to an offence under

 

section 1 or 2’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

12

 

Clause  4,  page  4,  line  15,  leave out ‘, (7) and (8)’ and insert ‘and (7)’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

13

 

Clause  4,  page  4,  line  20,  after ‘offence’, insert ‘(or the best estimate of that

 

amount)’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

14

 

Clause  4,  page  4,  line  35,  leave out subsection (8).


 
 

Public Bill Committee: 24 October 2012                  

23

 

Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Bill, continued

 
 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

15

 

Clause  4,  page  4,  line  41,  leave out from ‘appropriate’ to ‘to’ in line 42.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

16

 

Clause  4,  page  4,  line  43,  leave out ‘(or to do both)’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

17

 

Clause  4,  page  4,  line  46,  leave out ‘an appropriate sum under a compensation

 

order or’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

18

 

Clause  4,  page  4,  line  47,  leave out ‘(or both)’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

19

 

Clause  4,  page  5,  line  2,  leave out ‘, make a compensation order or do both’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

20

 

Clause  4,  page  5,  line  2,  at end insert—

 

‘(10A)    

If the amount required to be paid by a person under an unlawful profit order is not

 

paid when it is required to be paid, that person must pay interest on the amount

 

for the period for which it remains unpaid.

 

(10B)    

The rate of interest is the same rate as that for the time being specified in section

 

17 of the Judgments Act 1838 (interest on civil judgment debts).’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

21

 

Clause  4,  page  5,  line  6,  after ‘order’, insert ‘(subject to paragraph (e))’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

46

 

Clause  4,  page  5,  line  7,  leave out ‘in section 131’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

22

 

Clause  4,  page  5,  line  10,  leave out paragraph (c).


 
 

Public Bill Committee: 24 October 2012                  

24

 

Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Bill, continued

 
 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

23

 

Clause  4,  page  5,  line  12,  leave out ‘133(3)(b)’ and insert ‘133(3)(a) and (b)’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

24

 

Clause  4,  page  5,  line  12,  at end insert ‘, and

 

(e)    

the reference in section 133(3)(c) to a confiscation order under Part 6 of

 

the Criminal Justice Act 1988 or Part 2 of the Proceeds of Crime Act

 

2002 or an unlawful profit order (or both) were to such a confiscation

 

order or a compensation order under section 130 of the Powers of

 

Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 (or both).’.

 


 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

25

 

Clause  5,  page  5,  line  16,  leave out ‘in England’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

26

 

Clause  5,  page  5,  line  38,  after ‘housing’, insert ‘or a registered social landlord’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

27

 

Clause  5,  page  5,  line  46,  at end insert—

 

‘(4A)    

The amount payable under an unlawful profit order must be such amount as the

 

court considers appropriate, having regard to any evidence and to any

 

representations that are made by or on behalf of the landlord or the tenant, but

 

subject to subsections (5) and (6).’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

28

 

Clause  5,  page  6,  line  1,  leave out ‘Subject to subsection (6), the’ and insert ‘The

 

maximum’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

29

 

Clause  5,  page  6,  line  5,  after ‘(4)(c)’, insert ‘(or the best estimate of that amount)’.

 



 
 

Public Bill Committee: 24 October 2012                  

25

 

Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Bill, continued

 
 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

30

 

Clause  6,  page  6,  line  30,  leave out ‘in England’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

31

 

Clause  6,  page  6,  line  39,  after ‘housing’, insert ‘or a registered social landlord’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

32

 

Clause  6,  page  6,  line  40,  at end insert—

 

‘(3A)    

In this section “registered social landlord” has the same meaning as in Part 1 of

 

the Housing Act 1996.’.

 


 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

33

 

Clause  8,  page  8,  line  3,  at end insert—

 

‘(7A)    

In this Act “local authority” means a county council, a county borough council, a

 

district council, a London borough council, the Common Council of the City of

 

London or the Council of the Isles of Scilly.

 

(7B)    

In this Act “registered social landlord” has the same meaning as in Part 1 of the

 

Housing Act 1996.’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

34

 

Clause  8,  page  8,  line  4,  after ‘“associated offence”’, insert ‘, in relation to an

 

offence,’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

35

 

Clause  8,  page  8,  line  6,  leave out ‘an offence under section 1 or 2’ and insert ‘that

 

offence’.

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

36

 

Clause  8,  page  8,  line  7,  leave out ‘an offence under section 1 or 2’ and insert ‘that

 

offence’.


 
 

Public Bill Committee: 24 October 2012                  

26

 

Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Bill, continued

 
 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

37

 

Clause  8,  page  8,  line  10,  leave out ‘an offence under section 1 or 2’ and insert ‘that

 

offence’.

 


 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

47

 

Parliamentary Star - white    

Clause  9,  page  8,  line  15,  leave out from ‘Act’ to end of line 16 and insert ‘, apart

 

from this section, come into force—

 

(a)    

in relation to England, on such day as the Secretary of State may by order

 

appoint;

 

(b)    

in relation to Wales, on such day as the Welsh Ministers may by order

 

appoint.’.

 


 

NEW CLAUSES

 

Regulations about powers to require information in connection with housing fraud

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

NC1

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘(1)    

The appropriate authority may by regulations provide for the exercise, for

 

prescribed housing fraud investigation purposes, of powers to require the

 

provision of information.

 

(2)    

The appropriate authority may by regulations—

 

(a)    

make provision about the persons by whom powers conferred by

 

regulations under this section may be exercised;

 

(b)    

in particular, make provision for the authorisation by local authorities of

 

persons to exercise those powers.

 

(3)    

The provision that may be made by regulations under this section includes, in

 

particular, provision equivalent to—

 

(a)    

provision made by a relevant enactment, or

 

(b)    

provision that is capable of being made under a relevant enactment,

 

with such modifications as the appropriate authority thinks fit.

 

(4)    

For the purposes of subsection (3), each of the following enactments is a “relevant

 

enactment”—

 

(a)    

section 109B of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (powers to

 

require information);

 

(b)    

section 110A of that Act (authorisations by local authorities to exercise

 

powers of investigation);

 

(c)    

section 121DA(2) and (3) of that Act (interpretation of Part 6 of that Act).


 
 

Public Bill Committee: 24 October 2012                  

27

 

Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Bill, continued

 
 

(5)    

After the repeal of section 110A of the Social Security Administration Act 1992

 

by Part 1 of Schedule 14 to the Welfare Reform Act 2012, the reference to that

 

section in subsection (4) is to that section as it had effect immediately before it

 

was repealed.

 

(6)    

A person exercising powers conferred by regulations under this section must have

 

regard to guidance issued or approved by the appropriate authority.

 

(7)    

In this section “housing fraud investigation purposes” means purposes relating to

 

the prevention, detection or securing of evidence for a conviction of —

 

(a)    

an offence under this Act;

 

(b)    

an offence under the Fraud Act 2006 relating to the unlawful sub-letting

 

or parting with possession of the whole or part of a dwelling-house let by

 

a local authority, a private registered provider of social housing or a

 

registered social landlord,

 

(c)    

an offence under the Fraud Act 2006 relating to an application for an

 

allocation of housing accommodation under Part 6 of the Housing Act

 

1996,

 

(d)    

an offence under the Fraud Act 2006 relating to an application for

 

accommodation, or for assistance in obtaining accommodation, under

 

Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996,

 

(e)    

an offence under the Fraud Act 2006 relating to—

 

(i)    

a claim to exercise the right to buy under Part 5 of the Housing

 

Act 1985,

 

(ii)    

a claim to exercise the right to acquire under section 16 of the

 

Housing Act 1996, or

 

(iii)    

a claim to exercise the right to acquire under section 180 of the

 

Housing and Regeneration Act 2008, or

 

(f)    

an associated offence in relation to an offence mentioned in any of

 

paragraphs (a) to (e).

 

(8)    

In this section “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations under this section.’.

 


 

Regulations about related offence

 

Richard Harrington

 

Brandon Lewis

 

NC2

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘(1)    

The appropriate authority may by regulations provide for the creation of an

 

offence that may be committed by a person by refusing or failing to provide any

 

information or document when required to do so by or under regulations under

 

section [Regulations about powers to require information in connection with

 

housing fraud].

 

(2)    

Regulations under this section—

 

(a)    

must provide for an offence under the regulations to be triable only

 

summarily;

 

(b)    

may not provide for such an offence to be punishable with a fine

 

exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

 

(3)    

Regulations under this section—


 
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Revised 24 October 2012