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Something else that we have been hearing about through our evidence taking is the interaction between the licensing scheme and the planning system. Short-term let operators have been asking for the approach to be clarified and made more consistent, as things seem to operate differently in different parts of the country. You have spoken about it essentially being a localised scheme with differences in policies. However, is the Government hearing the same concerns about how the licensing scheme is interacting with the planning system in different parts of the country? Are there any plans to issue guidance on that?

You have referred to the industry advisory group, which you meet with regularly and which made a number of recommendations that are not included in the order. I would like to hear the Government’s thinking on why it has chosen not to include those recommendations in the order.

This is my final area of questioning. Will you outline any initial findings from the Government’s monitoring of the licensing system’s impact, and do you have any evidence that it is achieving its stated aims?

Okay.

The bill changes the way that charges and damages are calculated, with the intention that that will deter illegal evictions by bringing in the risk of having a much higher penalty. When I asked the previous panel this question, the witnesses gave brief answers. Do you agree with the proposal?

My last question might be more substantive. What are the links between evictions from private rented properties and homelessness in your areas? Will the provisions around homelessness prevention potentially lead to better outcomes, fewer evictions and less pressure on your services?

Before asking my questions, I declare a relevant interest, in that I was previously an owner of a private rented property until July last year.

I have a couple of questions on the provisions on evictions. First, what might be the potential impact on tenants and landlords of the proposal in the bill that the tribunal will have to consider whether to delay an eviction?

The question was about the requirement for the tribunal to consider whether to delay an eviction and the impact that that might have on individual tenants and landlords.

My second question is about how damages for illegal evictions are calculated. The bill changes that so that the risk of challenge and penalty will be higher for landlords who evict illegally. Do you have any comments on those changes? Is that a method of potentially improving some poor practice that might exist in the sector when it comes to illegal evictions?

I have a few questions about evictions. The first one is about the proposal to require the tribunals to consider whether to delay an eviction as standard with every application. Do witnesses support that change or not, and for what reasons?