18th
Jun 2021
The government’s announcement that although there will be a mandatory mediation process for businesses and commercial landlords because of pandemic debts, this will not be so for private rented sector.
There has been major mainstream media supposition that the government will be introducing measures to make it compulsory to undertake mediation processes for both commercial and residential landlords.
But this conjecture was finally put to rest for the PRS when Steve Buckley, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, announced to MPs that the commercial evictions ban due to end on June 30th will continue until March 25th next year.
New legislation will be introduced shortly for a new and binding arbitration process for commercial landlords and tenants to resolve issues over pandemic related arrears.
In his address to the MPs, Barclay did not include any suggestion that the same process would be made compulsory to resolve Covid related arrears in the private rented sector.
Barclay said: “We will introduce legislation in this parliament session to establish a backstop so that where commercial negotiations between tenants and landlords are not successful, they go into binding arbitration.
“Until that legislation is on the statute book existent measures will stay in place, including extending the existing moratorium in place to protect tenants from eviction to March 2022.
“All tenants should start to pay rent again in accordance with the terms of their lease or as otherwise agreed with their landlord.”
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