Prohibiting discrimination in respect of the renting or purchasing of premises

About the consultation

The Discrimination (Jersey) Law 2013 (“the Law”) protects people from discrimination on various grounds, including age. The Discrimination Law covers the buying and renting (“disposal”) of property.

At present, the Law does not include age discrimination in relation to the disposal or management of premises (Article 24 of the Law).

This means, as the Law currently stands, a prospective or existing tenant of residential property can be discriminated against by a landlord or the manager of a premises by the fact they have a child or children living with them.

In October 2020, the Social Security Minister (“the Minister”) undertook, as part of the Government Plan, to bring forward legislation to remove this exception. The effect of removing it would include prohibiting discrimination against potential or existing residential tenants, who have a child or children.

Members of the States Assembly have previously given support to a backbench Proposition for a change in the Law in this respect:

Housing: prevention of discrimination by landlords against tenants with children on the States Assembly website

Draft Regulations have been prepared (see below) and the Minister is now issuing them as the basis of this consultation exercise.

Consultation exercise

The Minister invites comments from interested parties on the draft Regulations, to ensure that the Government introduces appropriate protection in this area. 

The Minister invites representations on the policy issues identified below. 

The Minister will consider any comments received before finalising the draft Regulations and lodging them with a Proposition for the States Assembly to consider.

The consultation exercise will last from 6 April to 30 April 2021.

1. The Discrimination (Jersey) Law 2013 (“the Law”) currently prohibits discrimination in the disposal (ie renting or purchasing) of property. However, the protection of the Law in this area does not extend to discrimination on the basis of age. This means, among other things, that would-be residential tenants who have children under the age of 18 can be refused the possibility of renting a residential property because they have children; as the Law currently stands, this would not be an act of discrimination.
2. The Social Security Minister has prepared draft Regulations to amend the Law to prohibit such discrimination on the grounds of age. Before the draft Regulations are formally lodged with the States Assembly for approval, the Minister wishes to carry out a technical consultation exercise to receive feedback from persons and groups who have an interest in this area.
   
3. The draft Regulations form the basis of the consultation exercise. The Minister would be grateful if interested parties would respond, taking into account the following issues, which amending the Law seeks to address:
   

• in the amendments to the Law, in most cases discrimination against a person on the grounds of age in the disposal of property will be prohibited. This would include existing tenants and prospective residential tenants who have responsibility for a child or children under the age of 18, who would be living with them some, or all, of the time
• some types of property will be excluded from the prohibition. Age will still be able to be taken into account when undertaking a transaction relating to accommodation, for example, reserved for people of a particular age, those in residential care homes or registered providers of holiday accommodation
• the person or organisation selling or renting residential premises will be able to take account of health and safety issues for example when considering if it is reasonable for the property to be provided to someone who has children living with them
• the opportunity has also been taken to extend the Law to cover residential property marketing activities as well as the disposal of premises themselves. This will apply across all forms of discrimination, including age

Discrimination (AmendmentofLaw) (Jersey) Regulations 202-

Discrimination (Amendment of Law) (Jersey) Regulations 202-EXN

How to submit comments to the consultation

You can respond to the consultation until 30 April 2021 in the following ways:

Email: n.turner@gov.je

Write to: Nic Turner, Senior Policy Officer, Strategic Policy Team, Ground Floor, 19-21 Broad Street, St Helier, JE2 3RR

If you would like to make representations in person, email the Senior Policy Officer Nic Turner