Select committee: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee
Conclusion 14
Third Report - Exempt Accommodation
Published 27 Oct 2022
Paragraph 84
Addressed to Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee Exempt Accommodation All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The Government has no idea how much taxpayer money is spent on exempt accommodation, nor what this money is spent on. It cannot know whether the current system is delivering value for money. Millions of pounds are being poured into exempt housing benefit with no guarantee that vulnerable residents will get the support they need. In some cases, vulnerable residents who are likely to have low incomes have to pay for support out of their own pockets. It is quite possible that the Government does not need to spend more on exempt accommodation but to spend more wisely.
From: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee, Third Report - Exempt Accommodation (HC 21), paragraph 84, 27 October 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 27 June 2023 (deadline 27 December 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government says it "strongly welcome[s]" the Committee's recommendations and is supporting the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Bill, which it believes, "subject to Royal Assent", will address many of the issues raised.
- On national standards and licensing, the government says it will "formally consult" with the sector to develop the licensing scheme and national standards for support "as soon as possible after Royal Assent".
- On mandatory registration of all providers with the Regulator of Social Housing, it gives its reasons, including the risk of reclassification of the sector as public, and considers the Bill's measures "better placed" to provide oversight.
- On rent caps, it says it "cannot effectively determine a standardised rent cap at this point", citing the complexity and range of housing models in the sector.
- On data, it says research on the size, cost and demand of the sector will be published "by the end of 2023".