Communities Secretary Eric Pickles and Housing Minister Grant Shapps announced that with immediate effect (21st May), they are suspending the requirement for homeowners to provide a Home Information Pack (HIP) when selling their homes.
Mr Pickles laid an Order suspending HIPs with immediate effect, pending primary legislation for a permanent abolition. The action aims to avoid uncertainty and prevent a slump in an already fragile housing market.
The Government's position is that HIPs are currently holding back the housing market because sellers are having to fork-out extra cash, sometimes hundreds of pounds, just to be able to put their home up for sale.
Suspending HIPs will reduce the cost of selling a home, remove a layer of regulation from the process and provide a welcome help to the housing market during the recovery.
Mr Pickles and Mr Shapps also said that the Government is determined to help people reduce their energy bills, improve their energy security and tackle climate change by increasing the energy efficiency of their homes.
Sellers will therefore still be required to commission, but won't need to have received, an EPC before marketing their property, and the Government will consider how the EPC can play its part in the new drive for a low carbon and eco-friendly economy.
The decision by the Assembly Government to suspend the Mortgage Rescue Scheme in Wales has raised concerns, not least from the Welsh Liberal Democrat Housing Spokesperson Peter Black.
The Mortgage Rescue Scheme supports households threatened by repossession by enabling RSLs to buy a part or full share in the property. The owner can then remain in their home as a tenant on affordable rent.
The news that the scheme had been suspended broke after an email was sent to local authorities and Housing Associations requesting that 'no further applications are submitted, until further notice'.
Mr Black is now seeking an explanation from the Minister for Housing to justify the suspension of what has been widely regarded as a very successful scheme.
Mr Black said:
"No explanation has been given as to why this scheme has been suspended.
"We all know that waste needs to be cut to help the budget deficit, but this scheme is very effective.
"A modest £9 million budget has been used to help hundreds of families to remain in their homes.
"The alternative is a great strain on local authority resources, costing more money and potentially putting these families out onto the street."
According to Shelter Cymru, the scheme has so far prevented more than 600 adults and 300 children from losing their homes. It has called on the Welsh Assembly Government to think again about suspending it.