Chamber and committees

I asked whether an assessment had been made of the bill’s impact and about the evidence, but I think that you have covered that.

Rents are rising. The Office for National Statistics has shown that, since the introduction of the rent cap, rents have increased by nearly 16.5 per cent, which means that they are rising more quickly here than they are anywhere else in the United Kingdom. How will you ensure that the bill does not have a similar effect? You have said that you have been speaking to stakeholders, but what has come out of those discussions so far? Is there any benchmarking? Are you looking at examples of rent control being introduced elsewhere and at what has happened there?

People really cannot afford the increases. The committee has heard evidence that it is unaffordable for people to rent, and a lot of housing developers felt that they were being squeezed out of the market and that that was why the restrictions were introduced.

There is a problem on both sides—rents are too high for tenants, and there is a supply problem in relation to people who rent out properties. Those are two different problems, but they link together. What has come out of your talks with stakeholders so far on how to resolve the situation?

You talked about the need for the measures to be proportionate and necessary, which is very important. I have spoken about new homes being built and about people being unable to afford to rent properties, but we must not forget about landlords, as you mentioned. Some of them have high mortgages, and they must have the right amount of money to pay for them. Sometimes, they are being squeezed out of the market and say, “We’re not going to provide homes because we don’t get the return to pay even for a simple mortgage or a simple loan on a property.” Do you have any statistics or data on that? What is your view?

Good morning. The bill proposes to remove the ability of a rent officer to set a rent that is higher than the rent that the landlord has proposed. In practice, how often does a rent officer set a rent that is higher than the rent that the landlord has proposed? What impact do you think that the proposal might have on tenants’ willingness to refer a rent increase notice for adjudication?

Thank you.

I thank all the COSLA officials for their opening statements.

SLARC states:

“there is a need to promote the work of councillors and councils to improve awareness and understanding of the important role they play”.

Who is responsible for that promotion? How does COSLA see its role in such promotion?

Why do you think that that particularly affects women?

Shona Morrison mentioned women leaving the role and the need for good BAME representation. What evidence is there that pay is a significant barrier to candidates, particularly women, people with disabilities, lone parents and young people?

Pay is very important to councillors, and they rightfully deserve a salary. Does anything else need to change? Should there be a transformational change in how councillors work? You mentioned childcare. Is there anything in the pipeline that COSLA is working on with local authorities in relation to working patterns, easy access and so on?

Thank you.

We serve the public, whether we are an MSP, an MP or a councillor. It is in their hands to say whether we do a good enough job or add value to the local area on the work that we deliver. I think that there is something to look at there—maybe through asking for public opinion. I do not know whether councils do that or it could be recommended in the future.