Parliament is back from recess and there is still no announcement on the desperately needed Renter Reform Bill.
Poor and insecure renting is making people sick and impacting their physical and mental health. And it hits Black, Asian and minority ethnic people and marginalised groups hardest.
That’s why we’ve joined 29 organisations to write an open letter to the Prime Minister to say how deeply concerned we are about the lack of progress on the Bill.
The instability of private renting pushes people into poverty, poor mental and physical health and – ultimately – homelessness. The Renters Reform Bill urgently needs to be made law.
This Bill would remove the right of landlords in England to evict tenants for no reason with only two months’ notice. We believe that delays risk causing more avoidable hardship and suffering and a greater cost to taxpayers.
The Conservatives promised “a better deal for renters” – including a ban on no-fault evictions – in its manifesto ahead of the general election four years ago.
In May, the Renters Reform Bill was introduced to Parliament, containing this measure. But it has not yet been brought back for the next parliamentary stage.
We are concerned the Bill will not have time to pass through Parliament before the next election, which is expected to take place next year.
Under current housing legislation, known as Section 21, landlords can evict tenants without giving a reason.
Open letter to the Prime Minister: make the Renters Reform Bill law
Dear Prime Minister,
As third sector organisations we have come together to express our concerns at the current state of the rental market in England.
Four years have passed since government first promised to scrap Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions. During this time, we have continued to work with renters and prospective renters in an increasingly insecure, unaffordable, and unsafe rental market.
Shelter’s research has revealed that a private renter receives a Section 21 no fault eviction notice every three minutes in England, leaving them with just two months to find another home. But a third of private renters say, the last time they moved, it took them longer than two months to find somewhere else to live.
This dire lack of security disproportionately impacts the people we represent. And its impacts have knock-on effects for our communities and service users beyond just their housing needs.
Poor and insecure housing makes people physically sick, and has a well-documented, negative impact on their mental health. It limits people’s ability to contribute to their communities, engage in the labour market, achieve their goals and plan for the future. It causes social isolation and financial hardship, and traps people in cycles of poverty, struggle and uncertainty that are difficult, sometimes impossible, to break. These impacts are faced disproportionately by the already marginalised groups we represent and makes the work we do increasingly challenging.
We are deeply concerned about the lack of progress of the Renters Reform Bill. Any delay to the bill’s progress causes more avoidable hardship and suffering, and with it, greater cost to the taxpayer.
Scrapping Section 21 no fault evictions should be at the heart of your government’s plans. Renters cannot wait any longer.
Together we are calling on the Government to commit to progressing the Renters Reform Bill this parliament, and to pass it into law as promised in the party’s manifesto.
Signed,
Akiko Hart, Interim Director, Liberty
Alison Garnham, CEO, Child Poverty Action Group
Alison Morton, CEO, Institute of Health Visiting
Andy Bell, CEO, Centre for Mental Health
Anela Anwar, CEO, Z2K
Campbell Robb, CEO, Nacro
Dr Shabna Begum and Laurence Jay, Interim co-CEOs, The Runnymede Trust
Emma Revie, CEO, the Trussell Trust
Jabeer Butt, CEO, Race Equality Foundation
Jean Demars, Director, Public Interest Law Centre
Joanna Elson CBE, CEO, Independent Age
John Hume, CEO, People’s Health Trust
Julie Bishop, Director, Law Centres Network
Juliet Tizzard, Director of External Relations, Parkinson’s UK
Kamran Mallick, CEO, Disability Rights UK
Jo Bibby, Director of Health, the Health Foundation
Matthew Upton, Executive Director of Policy & Advocacy, Citizens Advice
Mushtaq Khan, CEO, Housing Diversity Network
Peter Babudu, Executive Director, Impact on Urban Health
Polly Neate, CEO, Shelter
Rachel Kirby-Rider, CEO, Young Lives vs Cancer
Ruth Talbot, Founder and Director, Single Parents Rights
Sarah Mann, CEO, Friends Families and Travellers
Simon Gale, CEO, Justlife Foundation
Sophie Neuburg, Director, Medact
Sue James, CEO, Legal Action Group
Suzanne Fitzpatrick, Director, I-SPHERE
Tim Bissett, Director, St Martin-in-the-Fields
Charity Vikki Brownridge, CEO, StepChange Debt Charity
Yvonne MacNamara, CEO, Traveller Movement
