The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.
All Official Reports of meetings in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
All Official Reports of public meetings of committees.
Displaying 971 contributions
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 22 March 2022
Paul McLennan
In your report, you say that you demonstrated that you were an effective public body and you list a number of examples. Would you like to highlight or expand on any of those points? You have touched on a few of them already. Is there any more that you would like to say about what is covered in the report in that respect?
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 15 March 2022
Paul McLennan
Would retrospective changes be considered again, if the circumstances justified that? Would the approach be the same? I know that it is hard to forecast the future but, if this happened again, would the approach be slightly different? Would this be considered again, going forward?
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 15 March 2022
Paul McLennan
I refer members to my registered interest as a serving councillor on East Lothian Council.
Good morning, minister and panel. A key thing that stakeholders such as the Scottish Chambers of Commerce and CBRE have raised is that the bill will have retrospective effect. Do you recognise that concern?
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 8 March 2022
Paul McLennan
The Scottish Government has already introduced financial support measures, including the tenant hardship grant, to support tenants throughout the pandemic, and that support has been gratefully received. Will the Scottish Government provide tenants with any financial help to support their recovery from the pandemic, as we come out of it? Obviously things will not change overnight with one click. Is such support being considered?
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 8 March 2022
Paul McLennan
Good morning. I refer everyone to my entry in the register of members’ interests as a serving councillor on East Lothian Council.
My question was going to be about investor confidence, but that seems to have been picked up in the previous question. However, the point that John Blackwood made takes us back to what Matt Downie said about waiting to see where things go over the next year or so and letting the market settle down on the back of Covid. Do you want to come back on that, and does anyone else want to come in on the issue of investor confidence? As Willie Coffey has mentioned, there is a balance to be struck in that respect.
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 8 March 2022
Paul McLennan
I am also keen to pick up on a point that Andrew Wilson made earlier. Andrew, like the Scottish Association of Landlords, you have talked about the private rented and build-to-rent sectors. I know that we are talking about landlords, but the build-to-rent sector is a really important part of the tenure mix, too. Could you expand on your evidence and say a little bit more about that?
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 8 March 2022
Paul McLennan
I would like to understand the association’s membership a little more. You said that most of your members tend to have one or two properties. What is the approximate breakdown? Do most landlords own one or two properties or are there bigger players who own 15 or 20 properties?
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 8 March 2022
Paul McLennan
I have a few more questions on the pre-action protocol. Some written evidence suggests that the protocol’s impact will be limited because there will be no duty on the landlord to comply with it. Why will there be no legal duty? Would not that ensure greater compliance with the protocol?
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 1 March 2022
Paul McLennan
The analysis of the response to the charter review showed that there was a slightly less positive view among individual tenants than among social landlords about the impact of the charter. Do you have any thoughts or comments on that?
Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee
Meeting date: 1 March 2022
Paul McLennan
I refer members to my entry in the register of interests. I am still a serving councillor in East Lothian Council.
In what ways does the minister think the current charter has helped to improve standards and outcomes for tenants and other service users?