The Law Commission has just announced it will be reviewing part of the statute, as part of its Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan.

The review is focusing on Part 2 of the LTA 1954, which relates to ‘security of tenure’ i.e. the tenant’s right to acquire a new lease of the property after expiry of the term of their existing lease.

The government has said it wants to create a legal framework that is widely used, makes more efficient use of the high street taking into account its other strategies such as the “net zero” and “levelling up” agendas and with the aim of fostering the productive and beneficial relationship between landlords and tenants.

In consulting on reform now, the government has cited growing calls for modernisation from industry following changing consumer behaviours to online retail, the financial crisis and global pandemic.

Although it has stood the test of time for nearly 70 years (and its pre-cursor meaning this manner of commercial leasehold title has been ongoing for nearly 100 years!), and is the backbone of commercial leasing, the LTA 1954 is often said to not be widely used by industry with the option for the parties to contract out of it. It has also been described as inflexible, bureaucratic and expensive.