CONTROVERSIAL plans to limit rent rises for private tenants to one per year and to allow rent levels and rent increases to be challenged before a tribunal have received overwhelming support, according to a Scottish Government report.
Campaigners who have called for increased rent controls in Scotland’s private rented sector immediately hailed the new findings which were reported by an independent analyst.
In March, the Government began a second consultation on a new tenancy system for Scotland which is being brought forward in a Holyrood Parliament Bill promoted as a new tenancy for the private rented sector.
The Scottish Association of Landlords and other organisations had responded to the first consultation exercise saying that the private rented sector was “in need of reform” but that “any form of rent control is unnecessary, not justified by data on rent increases in Scotland and will have negative consequences for both landlords and tenants”.
The new report on the second consultation exercise showed that out of 7,600 plus responses, some 99 per cent agreed that rent increases should be limited to no more than one per year, while 97 per cent of respondents said that tenants should be able to refer rent increases and rent levels that they consider unfair to a tribunal.
A majority of respondents also felt that rents should be based on criteria such as quality and size but not market levels.
According to the report, “the overall aim of the proposed new system is to improve security of tenure for tenants, while giving suitable safeguards for landlords, lenders and investors”.
The Living Rent Campaign – founded last October and which held its first national meeting in May – last week handed Housing and Welfare Minister, Margaret Burgess, an 8,000 signature petition calling for the re-introduction of rent controls and an end to unjust evictions.
The latest report acknowledged that both the Living Rent Campaign and the Scottish Association of Landlords had organised thousands of responses to the consultation.
The Living Rent Campaign stated: “Over the six weeks that the consultation was open, we gathered almost 2,500 responses from tenants and supporters across Scotland, and the impact we had was crucial.
“Had it not been for the Living Rent Campaign, tenants’ voices simply wouldn’t have been heard. Out of a total of 7,689 responses, only three other responses came from a tenant or resident group that wasn’t us.”
David Statham, from the group, said: “The responses to this consultation show a clear desire for change in private rented housing. Tenants are demanding better protections and better rights, but it is crucial that we go further and act to rein in unaffordable rents and stop exorbitant increases. Across Europe, rent controls exist to protect tenants and guarantee a private rented housing sector that is fit for purpose.
“Poll after poll show enormous public support for rent controls, and last week we delivered a petition of 8,000 signatures calling for their introduction. This consultation is just the latest evidence that the Scottish Government need to act.”
The Scottish Association of Landlords said it will continue to lobby elected representatives “to highlight our concerns about aspects of what is being proposed”.
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