Committee publication · Correspondence · 17 June 2026

Letter from the Chair to The Property Institute dated 16 June 2026 concerning recommendations on professional qualifications for property managing agents

From: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee

Inquiry: Pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill

Summary

The HCLG Committee Chair clarifies the committee's recommendation against mandatory qualifications led by designated professional bodies like The Property Institute. The letter explains that while professional bodies can supplement a new independent regulator, they should not have primary responsibility. The committee rejected the government's preferred approach due to leaseholder lack of confidence in industry self-regulation and specific concerns about TPI's handling of FirstPort sanctions.

Key findings

The committee does not support the government's proposal for designated professional bodies to regulate their members on mandatory qualifications
The committee's preferred approach is legislation for a new public body regulator with independent oversight of a Code of Practice, not mandatory qualifications alone
Professional bodies can play a supplementary role in designing and delivering qualifications but should not have overall responsibility for the Code of Practice
Leaseholders expressed lack of confidence in industry bodies' impartiality; the committee highlighted TPI's suspension and readmission of FirstPort despite consumer complaints
Lord Best's report emphasizes that qualifications alone are insufficient—enforcement and a code of practice overseen by an independent agency are also necessary

Tone

Procedural

Topics

property-regulationleasehold-reformprofessional-standardsconsumer-protectionhousing-policy

Key actors

Florence Eshalomi MP, Andrew Bulmer, The Property Institute (TPI), Matthew Pennycook MP, Lord Best, FirstPort, MHCLG

Notable line

“… being qualified does not necessarily make people behave properly; you still need a code of practice and enforcement.”

Key Quotes

“To be clear, we do not support the government's proposal for " designated professional bodies to regulate their members " .”
— Florence Eshalomi MP · Clarifying the committee's stance on mandatory qualifications implementation

“… being qualified does not necessarily make people behave properly; you still need a code of practice and enforcement. There needs to be an agency that enforces the code " .”
— Lord Best · Evidence to the committee inquiry on the sufficiency of qualifications alone

“We recognise that professional bodies can play an important role in designing and delivering professional qualifications to supplement the new regime, and are not opposed to this in principle.”
— Florence Eshalomi MP · Outlining the limited role the committee supports for professional bodies

“However, we cannot ignore the views expressed by many homeowners that TPI has failed in its stated aim to reinforce accountability within the managing agent profession.”
— Florence Eshalomi MP · Addressing leaseholder concerns about TPI's credibility

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Source · parliament.uk record ↗