The Act gives the Secretary of State power, subject to the affirmative resolution procedure, to set requirements for the minimum standards that properties in the private rented sector must meet, thereby introducing the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector. The Act amends the Housing Act 2004 to provide means of enforcement where properties do not meet the new requirements, for example by way of an enforcement notice.
	For landlords who have failed to take reasonably practicable steps to keep their properties free of serious hazards, local councils will be able to issue fines of up to £7,000, and powers are also available for local councils to prosecute or impose a fine for non-compliance with such earlier enforcement action. Fines of up to £30,000 can be imposed under the relevant provisions in the Housing Act 2004. The government intends to use secondary legislation to increase this to £40,000 to reflect inflation since this financial penalty was introduced and to be consistent with the fines for similar offences in the Act.
	The Act will allow "Awaab’s Law" to be applied to the private rented sector. It will enable timeframes to be set out in regulations within which PRS landlords and licensors must make homes safe where they contain serious hazards.
Detail of individual policies in the Act Decent Homes Standard