The government is refusing to publish the Justice Impact Test for the Renters\u2019 Rights Bill, a document outlining the legislation\u2019s impact on the courts and tribunal system.<\/p>\n
The test is generally carried out to estimate the potential volume of court cases, as well as any changes to legal aid that will be required.<\/p>\n
The request to see the test was made by property technology provider Reapit, but the request was refused by Baroness Taylor, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, who said \u201cJustice Impact Assessments are internal government documents which are not routinely published\u201d.<\/p>\n
Dr Neil Cobbold, commercial director at Reapit UKI, said: \u201cThe government\u2019s decision not to share the Renters\u2019 Rights Bill Justice Impact Test raises serious questions about transparency and accountability.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe estimate of changes in the number of court and tribunal cases is a vital tool for understanding how the legislation will affect the property sector \u2013 including case volumes \u2013 and whether the justice infrastructure is in place to support the change.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cWith limited time left for parliamentarians to scrutinise the Bill, the refusal to publish this information will stifle meaningful debate. Landlords, tenants, letting agents and legal professionals all need clarity to assess how the Renters\u2019 Rights Bill will impact their operations and access to justice.\u201d<\/p>\n
The minister added that the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is \u201cworking closely with the Ministry of Justice and HM Courts and Tribunal services to agree how these reforms are implemented, ensuring the courts and tribunals will have the resources they need to adjust to any changes in caseloads.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition, Baroness Taylor said: \u201cIn the longer term, we expect our reforms to reduce the volume of court possession claims, as only those cases where there is a clear, well-evidenced ground for possession will be able to proceed.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, Reapit believes there is a clear public interest in this information being published for wider scrutiny.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The government is refusing to publish the Justice Impact Test for the Renters\u2019 Rights Bill, a document outlining the legislation\u2019s impact on the courts and tribunal system. The test is generally carried out to estimate the potential volume of court cases, as well as any changes to legal aid that will be required. The request […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":597,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-596","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-second-home"],"yoast_head":"\n