07 September 2007
The Audit Commission is ill-equipped to regulate social housing, landlords were told this week.
Keith Exford, chief executive of Affinity Sutton Group, one of England's largest registered social landlords, said the commission had done an excellent job inspecting housing associations. But that did not necessarily make it a potential regulator, he told a National Housing Federation conference in London on September 5. 'It does not have the experience of intervening in failing governance, or giving the private lending community the confidence to continue lending at the fine rates we enjoy,' he said.
Roy Irwin, chief inspector of housing, has insisted that the commission is best placed to regulate RSLs, local authority housing departments and arm's-length management organisations.
But Exford backed Professor Martin Cave, whose review earlier this year recommended a new independent regulator for all social housing providers. The deadline for consultation on Cave's proposals is September 10.
Exford also stressed that it was important for RSLs to retain their not-for-profit identity. 'We are clearly on the edge of the public-private debate,' he said. 'We must be careful that any system that evolves does not push us over the edge.'
PFsep2007
