Luton landlords still battling the council on licensing schemes

Luton Council is battling with landlord groups over the creation of a selective licensing scheme across the town and an additional licensing scheme in the south ward.

Campaign group Luton Landlords and Letting Agents Ltd, made up of landlords, agents, and residents, has been battling the creation of the scheme, with some arguing the council already has the necessary powers it needs.

A new hearing at the Appeal Court on the creation of the schemes is set to take place in January 2026, according to a report in Luton Today.

Labour Saints councillor Ghulam Abbas is reported as saying: “We’ll continue to take action against any landlords which compromise those standards and the safety of our residents. We need to follow a legal process. If landlords raise objections, then these have to be dealt with and its unfortunate.

“But it takes as long as it takes for us to address all the concerns and the issue presented by landlords and letting agents out there. We must follow due process and make sure the scheme is passed through.

“If there are judicial reviews and challenges, we accept them and take that forward. If the claimants on the other side want to keep challenging us, then we need to follow that process.”

The current private sector enforcement team is set to more than double, as Abbas said 13 people are being recruited.

Luton Council attempted to launch a scheme in 2018 after a previous additional licensing scheme ended, but fell silent about its plans until December 2019 in response to local opposition.

New plans were unveiled in January 2022 which failed to materialise, in the wake of opposition from Luton Landlords and Letting Agents Ltd.

At the time it would have cost between £30,000 and £50,000 to launch and impose the schemes.