Labour will “take action where the previous Government has failed” on protections for renters – including ending no-fault evictions.
Its Renters’ Rights Bill will take up the baton on tackling issues that campaigners said the Conservatives’ Renters (Reform) Bill – which fell after Rishi Sunak called the General Election – had failed on.
That Bill, which had been described by homelessness charity Shelter as a “once-in-a-generation opportunity” to address problems facing renters, had reached its second reading in the House of Lords when the General Election was called and Parliament was dissolved.
A promise within it to end Section 21 so-called no-fault evictions had been delayed, much to the dismay of campaigners, with the previous Government saying the ban could not be implemented until the courts were assessed to have the capacity to deal with new cases.
This prompted accusations that ministers had abandoned renters and conceded to “pro-landlord Conservative MPs”.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “Too many people currently live with the threat of insecurity and injustice, and so we will make sure everyone can grow up in the secure housing they deserve.
“We will introduce tough new protections for renters, end no-fault evictions and raise standards to make sure homes are safe for people to live in.”
In May, figures showed a six-year high in repossessions by bailiffs through no-fault evictions.
There were 2,682 such repossessions between January and March this year, according to Ministry of Justice figures – a rise of almost a fifth on the same period last year.
The number was the highest for any quarter since the beginning of 2018 when there were 2,791 repossessions by county court bailiffs under the accelerated procedure.
Figures from April showed that in 2023, some 25,910 people were assessed as needing help for homelessness because of having had a Section 21 notice served on them – the highest number in the six years for which statistics are published on this measure.
The new Government said it is determined to “level decisively the playing field between landlord and tenant by providing renters with greater security, rights and protections and cracking down on the minority of unscrupulous landlords who exploit, mistreat or discriminate against tenants”.
Great to see confirmation in the #KingsSpeech today of new protections for renters, including an end to no fault evictions and action on bidding wars.
For renters to have security in their homes, it is crucial that any new possession grounds are not open to abuse. 1/3
— Renters' Reform Coalition (@RentersReformCo) July 17, 2024
Vowing to “take action where the previous Government has failed”, it said the new Bill will include ending Section 21 evictions.
No timeframe was mentioned as part of the King’s Speech on Wednesday, but in its manifesto Labour pledged to “immediately abolish Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions”.
The Bill will also provide new clear and expanded possession grounds so landlords can reclaim their properties when they need to, the Government said.
It is also set to strengthen tenants’ rights and protections, including empowering tenants to challenge rent increases and introducing new laws to end the practice of rental bidding wars by landlords and letting agents.
Other aspects include a Decent Homes Standard for the private rented sector; applying Awaab’s Law – named after the toddler who died after exposure to mould in his family’s social rented home – to ensure landlords speedily address hazards and make homes safe; and making it illegal for landlords to discriminate against tenants on benefits or with children.
The Bill also includes strengthening local councils’ enforcement powers to make it easier for them to identify and fine unscrupulous landlords; a new ombudsman service for the private rented sector to settle disputes and reduce the need to go to court; a new digital private rented sector database to store key information for landlords, tenants and councils in one place; and giving tenants the right to request keeping a pet.
Campaigners and housing charities generally welcomed the commitments, with Shelter saying they will “restore hope to England’s 11 million renters, whose lives have been plagued by no-fault evictions for decades”.
The Renters’ Reform Coalition said the Government is so far “saying the right things” but added it will “reserve judgment until we see the detail of the legislation”.
The organisation restated a call to introduce a cap on in-tenancy rent increases to avoid the situation of unaffordable rent rises simply becoming another form of no-fault evictions.
Earlier this year, Labour said rent controls were not party policy, stressing the risk it said they could pose to the availability of rental properties, as it distanced itself from a report it had commissioned which suggested rents should only be increased once a year and the rise capped at a certain amount.
Meanwhile, the National Residential Landlords Association said the system which replaces Section 21 “needs to be fair, workable and sustainable for both responsible landlords and renters”, warning this means “fixing a broken justice system which too often fails those reliant upon it”.
