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More housing-related legislative proposals have been published in the last couple of weeks.

The Antisocial Behaviour Bill, which has just been introduced into the House of Commons, will give councils, housing action trusts and registered social landlords new powers to deal with nuisance.

Apart from being under a new statutory duty to publish their antisocial behaviour policies and procedures, landlords will have revised powers to seek injunctions. Such action can, under these proposals, be taken against anyone whose behaviour is a nuisance to other residents or visitors, as well as to the landlord's staff. Also, the behaviour need not occur in the vicinity of the landlord's homes – for example, a landlord will be able to apply for these injunctions to protect a tenant who has been harassed in the past, even though the latest incidents happened somewhere else. Related injunction powers will allow social landlords to take action against drug dealing or a tenant using premises as a brothel.

In any of these cases, a court will be able to grant a power for arrest or order that someone is excluded from particular premises or a particular area where there is a threat of or use of violence. Such powers might, for example, be used in cases of racial or sexual harassment. These new powers are wider than those in the 1996 Housing Act: for example, an injunction under the new rules may include the exclusion of someone from their own residence.

In future, social landlords will have the power to seek an order demoting the status of a tenant. In the case of a council or housing action trust, the effect of such an order will be that the tenant will become effectively an introductory tenant. In the case of an RSL, the tenant will lose their assured tenancy – it will become in effect an assured shorthold tenancy. Social landlords will be able to use these procedures instead of seeking a possession order.

Another more general change is that in future, when a court is considering whether or not it is reasonable to grant a possession order against a secure or an assured tenant in a nuisance case, the court will have to give particular consideration to the effect or likely effect the misbehaviour has had on others.

Social landlords will have the power to seek an order demoting the status of a tenant, instead of seeking possession

It is surprising that the government has chosen to legislate on this ahead of the final report of the Law Commission's work on reforming housing law, which is expected this summer. One of the central themes in the Law Commission's consultation paper, published last year, is the need to have a single form of tenancy for the social rented sector to replace the present system under which RSL and council tenants' rights are governed by different laws. It is also surprising that the results of the consultation on proposals on fighting nuisance published last year by the-then Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions are not yet available.

But the Antisocial Behaviour Bill is not the only piece of legislation set to affect the housing sector. The draft Housing Bill that is now out for consultation also contains a wide range of important proposals and will probably lead to a parliamentary bill being introduced later this year. Most of the provisions extend or adapt councils' powers to deal with poor housing conditions in their area, along with specific changes to the powers they have dealing with houses in multiple occupation. Once implemented, they will introduce a fitness standard under which councils will be able to tailor action according to the severity of the health and safety hazards of each home.

Other changes in the bill that could affect RSLs are changes to the right to buy. These will extend the qualification period from two to five years and extend the period after sale when landlords may require a repayment discount from three years to five years. Similar changes will be made to the right to acquire scheme for RSL tenants and, presumably, the preserved right to buy regulations will also be amended.

A social housing ombudsman service will be set up for Wales and the bill also reintroduces the seller's pack idea, imposing new responsibilities on people who wish to sell their homes.