What new rent laws would mean for London as 'almost half living with damp or mould'

A row of houses in north London
-Credit: (Image: Yui Mok/PA Wire)


London landlords are set to be governed by new rules as the Labour Government plans to introduce new legislation. Included in the proposed laws is a 'blanket ban' on so-called 'no fault' evictions.

Section 21 of the existing statutes allows landlords to evict tenants with two months’ notice without providing a reason. Minister of State for Housing and Planning, and MP for Greenwich and Woolwich, Matthew Pennycook has said that renters are currently being 'arbitrarily evicted'.

These include 'tenants that make complaints about things like damp and mould'. He told LBC: “We want to drive out disreputable landlords from the sector, but good landlords through this Bill will have robust grounds for possession when they need to take their properties back.”

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Angela Rayner and Matthew Pennycook at a round table
London MP Matthew Pennycook is now a housing minister and working alongside Housing Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner -Credit:Adam Toms/MyLondon

Official figures from the Ministry of Justice, published in August, showed bailiff repossessions as a result of a Section 21 no-fault eviction reached the highest level for six years across the country. Landlords can apply for an accelerated possession order if the tenants have not left by the date specified in a Section 21 notice.

There were 2,916 such repossessions between April and June this year, an increase of 31 per cent on the same period last year and the highest quarterly figure since the beginning of 2018. The Bill would also extend Awaab’s Law – named after the toddler who died after exposure to mould in his family’s social rented home – to the private sector to ensure all landlords speedily address hazards and make homes safe.

In addition, the new laws would end blanket bans imposed by some landlords on those receiving benefits or with children. Further, a Decent Homes Standard will be applied to the private rented sector for the first time, with the Government highlighting that 21 per cent of privately rented homes are currently classified as 'non-decent' and more than 500,000 contain the most serious hazards.

Also included in the reforms is a legal requirement for Landlords and letting agents to publish the required rent for a property in a crackdown on the practice of forcing potential tenants into a bidding process. Landlords and agents will be banned from 'asking for, encouraging, or accepting any bids' above the publicly stated price.

'Half of private renters in England are living in homes cold, damp or mouldy'

It comes as new figures suggested that half of private renters in England are living in homes that are cold, damp or mouldy, even in the summer. The survey by Citizens Advice found that 45 per cent of private renters are currently experiencing damp, mould or excessive cold in their home. In addition, the research found that 48 per cent of these households have been living it for more than a year.

With tens of thousands even within individual London boroughs on waiting lists, and thousands of those in unsuitable temporary accommodation, MyLondon asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Angela Rayner, about housing in the capital before the general election in June. She said: "We have to deal with the supply problem that we have got as well, and that's why we've got a programme to build more social houses.

"With a Labour government working with [City Hall] to deliver that, I think we can tackle homelessness [...] and also make sure that people can get the houses they deserve. That security is very important. It affects families, it affects your job, it affects every respect of your life."

She then described house building 'in terms of growing the economy' as a 'number one issue' for the party, and Labour would 'deal with the planning situation'.

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