English: I'm grateful for the opportunity today to introduce this Member's legislative proposal to abolish leasehold tenure for new residential houses. We have, of course, debated this issue on several occasions. On the last occasion, this Chamber held a very detailed, informed and passionate individual Members' debate on the problems arising from the renewed growth of leasehold housing and the associated consequences for tenants of the leasehold agreements that they were subject to. The motion we debated attracted cross-party support, and it was clear from Members' contributions that leasehold is a problem in every part of Wales. Since that debate, there has been a statement from the Minister. It does not rule out legislation, but focuses on voluntary agreement with a number of major developers not to build new leasehold housing. Now, I very much welcome that statement, but make the argument today that we should go further, and we should put the issue beyond any future doubt by introducing a short and a simple piece of legislation that would prohibit, by law, any new leasehold houses being built in Wales. So, in order to explain my reasoning, it would be helpful to remind Members of the background to this issue. There are an estimated 200,000 leasehold properties in Wales. Leasehold is a relic from the eleventh century, a time when land meant power - and unfortunately it still does. For today's landowner, leasehold means maximising income and retaining control of the land they own, but for the leaseholder it means the exact opposite: uncontrollable costs and a lack of control over what they can do with the property that they own. So, when the Scottish Government legislated to abolish feudal tenure, they got the tone exactly right. Like many Members, I have received representations from constituents where the root cause is the inherent unfairness, the complexity and outdated nature of leasehold contracts, complaints about spiralling ground rents, people feeling trapped in their own home, and property values that plummet year on year as the remaining lease reduces - and those are commonplace. When leaseholders seek either to renew their lease or to buy the freehold of their home, they are held to ransom. Leaseholders are completely defenceless before the ground landlord. And because of the profitability of the leasehold system, finance corporations have brought out a great many landlords, and as result, a person's home is no longer a rock on which their life is built, but a commodity to trade and speculate on. So, to me, it is totally sensible that the UK Government have committed to work with the Law Commission to support legal reform. The complexity of leasehold contracts, with elements of contract and property law intertwined, is such that it makes sense to await the Law Commission proposals, subsequent to the introduction of UK-wide legislation, to deal with all the retrospective consequences, which we do not, in any event, have the constitutional competence to deal with at the present time. So, today's debate is about two things. Primarily, it is a proposal for the introduction of a simple piece of Welsh legislation to prohibit any future building of leasehold houses. It does not relate to apartments or shared buildings; solely to new residential houses. Secondly, this proposal requires developers and selling agents to provide potential buyers of existing leasehold properties with relevant facts about leasehold tenure. [ Interruption.] Yes, I will.
Welsh: Rwy'n ddiolchgar am y cyfle heddiw i gyflwyno cynnig deddfwriaethol gan Aelod i ddiddymu lesddeiliadaeth ar gyfer tai preswyl newydd. Rydym wedi trafod y mater hwn ar sawl achlysur wrth gwrs. Y tro diwethaf, cynhaliodd y Siambr hon ddadl fanwl, deallus ac angerddol iawn gan Aelodau unigol ar y problemau sy'n deillio o dwf newydd tai lesddaliad a'r canlyniadau cysylltiedig i denantiaid yn sgil y cytundebau lesddaliad roeddent yn ddarostyngedig iddynt. Denodd y cynnig a drafodwyd gennym gefnogaeth drawsbleidiol, ac roedd yn amlwg o gyfraniadau'r Aelodau fod lesddaliad yn broblem ym mhob rhan o Gymru. Ers y ddadl honno, cafwyd datganiad gan y Gweinidog. Nid yw'n diystyru deddfwriaeth, ond mae'n canolbwyntio ar gytundeb gwirfoddol gyda nifer o ddatblygwyr mawr i beidio ag adeiladu tai lesddaliad newydd. Nawr, rwy'n croesawu'r datganiad hwnnw yn fawr iawn, ond rwy'n dadlau heddiw y dylem fynd ymhellach, a dylem roi'r mater y tu hwnt i unrhyw amheuaeth yn y dyfodol drwy gyflwyno deddfwriaeth fer a syml a fyddai'n gwahardd drwy gyfraith unrhyw dai lesddaliad newydd rhag cael eu hadeiladu yng Nghymru. Felly, er mwyn egluro fy rhesymau, byddai'n ddefnyddiol atgoffa'r Aelodau am y cefndir i'r mater hwn. Ceir tua 200,000 eiddo lesddaliad yng Nghymru. Mae lesddaliad yn grair o'r unfed ganrif ar ddeg, adeg pan oedd tir yn golygu pŵer - ac yn anffodus, mae hynny'n wir o hyd. I dirfeddiannwr heddiw, mae lesddaliad yn golygu sicrhau'r incwm mwyaf posibl a chadw rheolaeth dros y tir y maent yn berchen arno, ond i'r lesddeiliad, mae'n golygu'r gwrthwyneb yn llwyr: costau afreolus a diffyg rheolaeth dros yr hyn y gallant ei wneud gyda'r eiddo y maent yn berchen arno. Felly, pan ddeddfodd Llywodraeth yr Alban i ddileu deiliadaeth ffiwdal, cawsant y cywair yn hollol gywir. Fel llawer o Aelodau, rwyf wedi derbyn sylwadau gan etholwyr sy'n sôn mai'r achos sylfaenol yw annhegwch cynhenid, cymhlethdod a natur hen ffasiwn contractau prydles, cwynion am renti tir cynyddol, pobl yn teimlo'n gaeth yn eu cartrefi eu hunain, a gwerthoedd eiddo sy'n plymio o un flwyddyn i'r llall wrth i'r brydles sy'n weddill leihau - ac mae'r rheini'n gyffredin. Pan fo lesddeiliaid yn ceisio adnewyddu eu prydles neu brynu rhydd-ddeiliadaeth eu cartref, cânt eu dal yn wystlon. Mae lesddeiliaid yn hollol ddiamddiffyn gerbron landlord y tir. Ac oherwydd proffidioldeb y system lesddeiliadaeth, mae corfforaethau cyllid wedi prynu gan lawer iawn o landlordiaid, ac o ganlyniad, nid craig y mae'n adeiladu ei fywyd arni yw cartref yr unigolyn mwyach, ond nwydd i'w fasnachu a'i hapfasnachu. Felly, i mi, mae'n gwbl synhwyrol fod Llywodraeth y DU wedi ymrwymo i weithio gyda Chomisiwn y Gyfraith i gefnogi diwygio'r gyfraith. Mae cymhlethdod cytundebau lesddaliad, gydag elfennau o gyfraith contract a chyfraith eiddo'n cydblethu, yn golygu ei bod yn gwneud synnwyr i aros am gynigion Comisiwn y Gyfraith, yn dilyn cyflwyno deddfwriaeth ledled y DU i ymdrin â'r holl ganlyniadau ôl-weithredol, nad oes gennym ni, beth bynnag, gymhwysedd cyfansoddiadol i ymdrin â hwy ar hyn o bryd. Felly, mae'r ddadl heddiw yn ymwneud â dau beth. Yn bennaf, mae'n cynnig cyflwyno darn syml o ddeddfwriaeth Gymreig i roi terfyn ar adeiladu tai lesddaliad yn y dyfodol. Nid yw'n berthnasol ar gyfer fflatiau neu adeiladau a rennir, dim ond tai preswyl newydd. Yn ail, mae'r cynnig hwn yn ei gwneud yn ofynnol i ddatblygwyr ac asiantau gwerthu i ddarparu gwybodaeth berthnasol am lesddeiliadaeth i ddarpar brynwyr eiddo lesddaliad sy'n bodoli eisoes. [ Torri ar draws.] Iawn, fe wnaf.