Portsmouth’s local authority will receive stronger powers to take over empty and derelict homes, under plans unveiled during the Labour Party’s Annual Conference in Liverpool.
The changes could make it simpler for councils to bring some of the more than 300,000 dwellings classed as “long-term empty” could be made available to provide essential housing for families in need.
Empty Dwelling Management Orders (EDMOs) allow councils to take over the management of long-term empty homes and bring them back into occupation for an initial period of 12 months, up to a total of 8 years, but no applications have been made since 2021-22.
In the English Devolution White Paper, the government committed to strengthen local authority powers to take over management of empty properties.
Ministers have announced that they will reverse damaging changes made in 2012 by the Tories during the Coalition Government by:
- Reducing the period a property must be empty before it becomes eligible for an EDMO from two years to six months, to prevent homes from falling into serious disrepair and accelerating their return to use
- Removing burdensome evidential paperwork for local authorities to provide the residential property tribunal, simplifying the process and empowering local authority empty homes officers to act more decisively and with greater speed
- Exploring further changes to protect local authorities from absorbing the costs they face for managing homes subject to EDMOs
The latest official statistics show 303,185 dwellings in England were classed as “long-term” empty (more than six months) in 2025.
Meanwhile, the number of homeless children in England living in temporary accommodation has hit 177,530, as a result of long-term shortages in housing supply.
Commenting, Stephen Morgan, MP for Portsmouth South, said:
“Labour is putting the tools in local leaders’ hands to take over desperately needed derelict homes and put them back into use. New powers will ensure earlier intervention to prevent properties from falling into serious disrepair by accelerating their return to use.
“With so many children and families still in need of a safe and secure home, we can’t sit by and allow long-term empty dwellings in Portsmouth to be left unused.
“However, this Government is not stopping there and will explore further changes to protect local authorities from absorbing the costs they face in taking over empty homes.”
