Jon Holbrook assesses the ability of councils to bring possession proceedings against tenants involved in the recent riots
In the wake of the riots that swept through several cities in August, the Prime Minister stated that people who “loot and pillage their own community” should be evicted from council houses. A number of authorities, including Wandsworth, Westminster, Greenwich, Hammersmith and Fulham, Nottingham and Salford have either served eviction notices or said they will consider serving them in an attempt to evict those involved in the riots.
The desirability of the proposal has provoked much comment but this article considers the legal issues that are most likely to arise when possession proceedings are brought against council tenants who either rioted or who live with family members who did. Although concerned primarily with council tenancies, similar issues would arise for housing associations and private landlords as the legislation is materially the same under the Housing Acts 1985 and 1988.
Locality
Since it was introduced by the Housing Act 1996 (HA 1996), local authority landlords have been
