There is no danger of the new regulatory regime being a weaker one, but the jury is out on whether the current proposals will lead to a truly proportionate system, says CIH Scotland.

Responding to the Scottish Housing Regulator’s consultation, CIH says tenants, lenders and others can be reassured that regulation will continue to be robust, but that there are a number of proposals which suggest an unduly prescriptive approach.

David Bookbinder, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at CIH Scotland, said: "An effective regulatory regime which provides real credibility for the sector and helps drive up standards where that’s needed is the end point we all want. We’re happy with much of what’s proposed, but feel that there are too many signs of the Regulator wanting to micro-manage.

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"For example, it’s quite right that a landlord should report to its tenants on its performance, but it’s not right for the Regulator to insist that this report must cover every Charter outcome - unless tenants indicate that this is what they want.

"The five different types of inspection also raise some unease. It’s perfectly reasonable for inspections to remain as one of the Regulator’s key powers, but depending on how these powers are used in practice, the approach could turn out to be heavy. With “thematic inspections” now involving gradings for each participating landlord, there’s a worry that these might not be the useful critiques they have been in the past on issues such as evictions and practice on homelessness.

"And whilst the Regulator is right to highlight the importance of RSL governing bodies being fit for purpose and regularly refreshed, we don’t think it’s appropriate at this stage to be prescriptive on time limits for board members."

(GK)