The End of Upward-Only Rent Reviews?

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, which had its first reading in the House of Commons on 10 July 2025, contains an unexpected ban on upward-only rent review clauses in new commercial leases. The Government has stated that the policy behind this ban is supporting smaller businesses who are struggling to keep up with open market rent reviews that only allow rent to rise, not fall.

The measure has generated concern among landlords and investors, particularly given the surprising lack of prior consultation on such a major reform in a sector that has historically operated with minimal statutory intervention. For now, the Bill remains in its early parliamentary stages and is highly susceptible to changes following lobbying, with its Second Reading due in September.

This article sets out the scope of the proposed ban and its implications for the commercial rental sector if passed as it currently stands.

The Draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill

The government announced the introduction of the draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill in January 2026. This Bill proposes several reforms to the current flat ownership system, including:

· A ban on new flats being sold as leaseholds – they would need to be sold as commonhold properties, which the Government is pushing to become the default form of flat ownership; and

· A cap on ground rents at no more than £250 pa, which will be reduced to a peppercorn after a 40-year transitional period has passed.

The Housing, Communities and Local Government (‘HCLG’) Committee has now launched a short public inquiry into the Government’s draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill (‘the Bill’), which was published for pre-legislative scrutiny on 27 January 2026.

Conservative Party Pledges to Abolish SDLT

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch announced at the Conservative Party Conference 2025 yesterday that the next Tory Government to be elected will completely abolish stamp duty land tax (SDLT) paid by buyers on primary residences in England.