Labour has been accused of rubbing “salt in the wounds” of leaseholders by offering them the “right to request” faster broadband while watering down plans to make it easier for homeowners to switch managing agents.
In plans laid out in the King’s Speech on Wednesday, ministers said homeowners would gain permission to ask for a faster broadband connection under the new commonhold and leasehold rules. But there was no mention of Right to Manage, which Labour promised to address in both its manifesto and the 2024 King’s Speech.
Leaseholders, many of whom have been left trapped in unsellable homes because of escalating service charges applied by managing agents, said the promise was a “disappointment”.
Right to Manage allows some leaseholders to take over the financial management of the building such as maintenance of communal areas. It means a landlord, or freeholder, still owns the building but the leaseholders manage it.
In 2020, the Law Commission made 101 recommendations to make Right to Manage more accessible and easier for leaseholders.
The recommendations included relaxing the qualifying criteria that allowed leaseholders to use Right to Manage and ensuring that the process was not “prevented due to technical, minor and inconsequential mistakes”.
Labour pledged to implement the Law Commission’s package of proposals on Right to Manage in its manifesto. It was earmarked for inclusion in a draft leasehold and commonhold reform bill in the 2024 King’s Speech.
Shula Rich, a leasehold expert and campaigner, said: “I am disappointed with this mundane offering. The way forward has to be making leaseholds liveable for leaseholders not increasing Openreach.
“They weep tears for us and rub salt in our wounds.”
