1.-(1) These regulations may be cited as the Rent Assessment Committees (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 1980 and shall come into operation on 28th November 1980.

(2) In these regulations "the principal regulations" means the Rent Assessment Committees (England and Wales) Regulations 1971.

2. In regulation 2(2) of the principal regulations, for the definition of "committee", there shall be substituted the following definition:-�

""committee" means a rent assessment committee constituted under Schedule 10 to the Rent Act 1977, to which a reference is made, but does not include a rent assessment committee carrying out the functions conferred on it by section 72 (Functions of Rent Tribunals) or section 142 (Leasehold Valuation Tribunals) of the Housing Act 1980(1).".

3. For regulation 3(3) of the principal regulations there shall be substituted the following:-�

"(3) Notices of such date, time and place shall be given by the committee, not less than 14 days before the said date-

(a)Where the reference is an application for a certificate of fair rent referred pursuant to paragraph 7 of Schedule 12 to the Rent Act 1977(2), to the applicant and, in a case to which paragraph 11 of the said Schedule applies, to the tenant;

(b)where the reference is an application supported by a certificate of fair rent referred pursuant to paragraph 11 of Schedule 11 to the Rent Act 1977, to the applicant; and

(c)in every other case, to the landlord and the tenant.".

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These regulations amend the Rent Assessment Committees (England and Wales) Regulations 1971, which regulate the procedure to be followed by rent assessment committees when a reference is made to them by the rent officer under Part IV of the Rent Act 1977. These regulations are consequent on the Housing Act 1980 and the Regulated Tenancies (Procedure) Regulations 1980. The 1980 Act gave new functions to rent assessment committees, which now exercise the functions formerly conferred on rent tribunals under the Rent Act 1977 and on the Lands Tribunal under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967(c.88). These regulations disapply the 1971 regulations when these functions are being exercised. The Regulated Tenancies (Procedure) Regulations 1980 modified Schedule 12 to the Rent Act 1977 (dealing with certificates of fair rent) to which the 1971 regulations refer, and the present regulations make the consequential changes.