LANDLORDS in Peel and Barnfield wards could be subjected to "draconian" restrictions as part of a £30,000 pilot licensing scheme.
The scheme, announced at the Peel and Barnfield Area Council meeting, is set to be introduced in the next few months in an area bordered by Royds Street, Nuttall Street, Belfield Road and Hudson Street, where residents have reported problems with both landlords and tenants.
Under the new rules, owners of rented properties would have to secure a licence to be allowed to rent them, and would be subject to strict rules about tenants' behaviour.
The scheme would be run through the Peel and Barnfield Neighbourhood Management Board.
Vice-chairman of the board, Councillor Tony Dobson, said the East Lancashire Landlords Accreditation Scheme had agreed to provide the money, and the scheme could start in a few months once it had been received and an officer had been put in place to do the work.
He said: "Landlords would have to pay a fee to be registered and licensed and they would have to follow a lot of conditions that we would impose, which could be anything from tenants putting the bins out on time to dealing with anti-social behaviour and stopping them sitting out on the pavement."
Councillor Graham Jones, chairman of the board, told the meeting: "The number one item we are trying to deal with in this area is bad landlords and we have looked at how other licensing schemes work.
"I'm keen to see draconian licensing brought in in this area, with severe fines. The conditions will be a matter for discussion but I would be keen to see the toughest ones."
