Section 43: Consent required for certain disposals not within s. 32., Housing Act 1985

The consent of the Secretary of State is required for the disposal by a local authority, otherwise than in pursuance of Part V (the right to buy) . . ., of a house or dwelling belonging to the authority—

which is let on a secure tenancy or an introductory tenancy, or

of which a lease has been granted in pursuance of Part V,

but which has not been acquired or appropriated by the authority for the purposes of this Part.

The consent of the Welsh Ministers is required for the disposal by a local authority of a dwelling belonging to the authority which is subject to a tenancy which is a secure contract or is an introductory standard contract.

Consent may be given—

either generally to all local authorities or to any particular local authority or description of authority, and

either generally in relation to all houses or dwellings or in relation to any particular house or dwelling or description of house or dwelling.

Consent may be given subject to conditions.

Consent may, in particular, be given subject to conditions as to the price, premium or rent to be obtained on a disposal of the house or dwelling, including conditions as to the amount by which, on a disposal of the house or dwelling by way of sale or by the grant or assignment of a lease at a premium, the price or premium is to be, or may be, discounted by the local authority.

The matters to which the appropriate national body may have regard in determining whether to give consent and, if so, to what conditions consent should be subject shall include—

the extent (if any) to which the person to whom the proposed disposal is to be made (in this subsection referred to as "the intending purchaser") is, or is likely to be, dependent upon, controlled by or subject to influence from the local autho-rity making the disposal or any members or officers of that authority;

the extent (if any) to which the proposed disposal would result in the intending purchaser becoming the predominant or a substantial owner in any area of housing accommodation let on tenancies or subject to licences;

the terms of the proposed disposal;

in the case of a proposed disposal which is part of a proposed large scale disposal, the appropriate national body's estimate of the exchequer costs of the large scale disposal; and

any reduction in the amount that the local authority may be required to pay under section 69 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016 (payments to Secretary of State in respect of vacant higher value housing in England) as a result of the disposal;

any other matters whatsoever which the appropriate national body considers relevant.

The estimate mentioned in subsection (4A)(ca) is to be based on such assumptions (including as to the period during which housing subsidies may be payable) as the appropriate national body may determine, regardless of whether those assumptions are, or are likely to be, borne out by events.

Subsections (4AB) to (4AE) of section 34 apply for the purposes of this section as they apply for the purposes of that section.

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For the purposes of this section the grant of an option to purchase the freehold of, or any other interest in, a house or dwelling to which this section applies is a disposal and a consent given under this section to such a disposal extends to a disposal made in pursuance of the option.

References in this section (other than in subsection (4A)(ca) and in subsections (4AB) to (4AE) of section 34 as applied for the purposes of this section) and in section 44 to a local authority shall include references to a National Park authority.

The Secretary of State shall consult the Regulator of Social Housing before deciding whether to consent under this section to anything within the Regulator's remit.

Section 43: Consent required for certain disposals not within s. 32.

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