New clause 42 will introduce a requirement for a landlord to provide specific information requested by a leaseholder. That information is vital for a leaseholder to enable the sale of their property; it also provides the detail that a prospective purchaser needs to make an informed decision. Regulations will set out what information is to be provided, as well as a maximum timeframe and a maximum cost for providing that information. Regulations will further specify how a request must be made, how the requested information must be provided, in what circumstances a request can be refused and when the time period for its provision may be extended. The clause also sets out enforcement mechanisms, including the various orders that a tribunal may make such as requiring compliance, awarding damages and requiring the repayment of excessive fees.

Under the current system, there is no consistency for leaseholders, some of whom are left paying thousands of pounds and waiting months for this information. Some of them never receive the information at all. The clause will reduce the time that leaseholders have to wait to receive the information that they need, which should reduce delays in selling their properties. It will also make the selling process cheaper and less uncertain. I commend new clause 42 to the Committee.

I turn to new clause 43. There is currently no obligation for an estate manager to respond to a sales information request from a homeowner who wishes to sell their property. Although many estate managers do provide information in a timely manner, failures by some managers mean that it can take weeks or months for homeowners on freehold estates to receive the information that they need, if they receive it at all.

The new clause, along with new clauses 44, 45 and 46, will provide for a fairer, more streamlined system in which homeowners can get the information they need when they need it. It will introduce a requirement for an estate manager to provide specific information requested by a homeowner who intends to sell their property. Subsection (2) will require the request to be set out in a specified form and given in a specified manner. This will ensure that the estate manager can confirm that it is indeed a request for sales information, rather than a general request for information. The information will be specified in regulations but must relate to estate management, estate managers, estate management charges or relevant obligations, and must be reasonably expected to help a prospective purchaser to decide whether to purchase a property. We intend to work with estate managers, homeowners and other stakeholders when preparing the regulations, to ensure that we capture the right level of detail. I commend new clause 43 to the Committee.

New clause 44 will introduce a requirement for an estate manager to provide sales information requested by a homeowner on a freehold estate, within a timeframe set out in regulations. Subsections (2) and (3) will require estate managers to request from another party information that they do not hold, if they consider that the other party holds it; the other party must provide the information that they possess. Subsections (4) and (5) will place an additional obligation on the other party to forward on the request if it does not hold the information; the further party must provide the information that it possesses.

Subsection (6) requires that the information must be requested within a specified period. Subsection (7) states that if a person receives a request but does not hold the required information, they must confirm to the person who made the request that they do not hold that information. This is called a negative response confirmation. The negative response confirmation should detail that the individual does not hold the information and the actions taken by the individual to determine that. Subsection (10) allows regulations to set out the detail of how the process for making onward requests for information should work.

New clause 44 will create the framework for ensuring that relevant sales information is provided in a timely manner, and will cut the time that it takes for a homeowner to receive sales information. I commend it to the Committee.

I turn to new clause 45. Estate managers have considerable discretion as to what they can charge for collating and providing sales information. This means that homeowners can often be left paying an excessive amount. The new clause will allow for a maximum fee to be set out in regulations and will introduce a maximum fee for onward requests for information. The new clause also sets out that any cost incurred by the homeowner for the provision of sales information by the estate manager is to be an administration charge and should not be treated as an estate management charge. I commend it to the Committee.

I turn to new clause 46. Under the current arrangements, homeowners often feel powerless when information is not forthcoming or if they are charged what they consider an extortionate fee for obtaining it. New clause 46 will introduce an enforcement mechanism where sales information has not been provided or where the cost charged has exceeded the maximum permitted cost. Subsection (2) will allow a homeowner who has made a sales information request or an individual who has made an onward request to make an application to the relevant tribunal. The tribunal, in turn, may make one or more orders. This includes an order that the estate manager or other party provide the sales information within a specified time frame.

New clause 46 will also allow the tribunal to award damages of up to £5,000 to the homeowner or person making the onward request. In cases of overcharging, the tribunal may require the excess amount to be repaid or, where there has been a charge in breach of regulations, may require the full amount to be repaid. I commend the new clause to the Committee.