Government U-turn on "abolishing" leasehold (for the time being at least)

On 10 May 2023 The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities announced that Michael Gove's long stated aim of "abolishing leasehold" (which he confirmed as recently as January 2023) would not be happening in the next Parliamentary session after all. 

The proposed changes from leasehold to commonhold ownership for flats would have been one of the largest reforms of housing and property law in memory, and practitioners have been watching with interest for some time. It appears we will have to wait a little longer as Mr Gove's plans have been shelved for this year at least, much to the anger and frustration of leasehold reform campaigners.

That is not to say that other leasehold reform does not remain on the horizon. Mr Gove's promise to make lease extensions and freehold enfranchisement "easier, faster, fairer and cheaper" are reported by the BBC to be the subject of new legislation in Autumn 2023. We wait to see what that legislation might look like, and how far the reforms will go.