Member

I turn first to Amendment 118. The Bill as drafted does not include a specific provision stating that, once consent to keep a pet is granted, it will remain for the duration of the tenancy. This will cause obvious anxiety and uncertainty for pet owners. This simple amendment would ensure that a landlord may not review or withdraw consent, once given. It was originally proposed in the other place during the passage of the previous Bill on rental reform by the honourable Member for Greenwich and Woolwich, Matthew Pennycook, now Minister for Housing and Planning, during his tenure as shadow Housing Minister—and he was absolutely right. Without such a provision, families with pets will remain in an ongoing state of housing insecurity, with the threat of eviction always looming around the corner.