THE GREEN VIEW We need to give financial support to tenants hit by Covid-19 outbreak

COVID-19 has already brought massive changes to our lives, with significant disruption to daily routines, nevermind the health impacts and, regretfully in some cases, tragic outcomes.

To cope with the pressures put on household incomes, Governments at all levels across the world have been scrabbling around to try to improve existing, or simply create new, safety nets to catch those affected by the outbreak.

In the UK, as elsewhere, our welfare system has shown itself to be out of date and woefully inadequate at responding to the more complex patterns of work and life we have today, alongside our increasing societal understanding of disabilities.

The case for a universal basic income, and for more universal services, grows by the minute, as does rights for all workers, from those in the gig economy to working in retail. Another area of inequality Covid-19 has shown a spotlight on is housing.

It is morally reprehensible that at this time an individual or a family could be facing eviction, yet many are. In Parliament last week Green MSP Patrick Harvie raised some of the cases he and others in the chamber had received from constituents, with people in the private rented sector being evicted for a range of reasons, as well as being issued demands for outstanding payments.

Thanks to pressure from Greens, the National Union of Students and other campaigners the Scottish Government has now banned evictions for the next six months.

This is a good step forward but we support calls from the NUS to go further to ensure no rent increases for the next 12 months. I know that there are many responsible landlords out there who are trying to do the best for their tenants, and that’s why we think there should be financial support made available to tenants impacted by Covid-19 to help pay their rents.

Housing is a human right, and in recent years the Scottish Parliament has passed some impressive pieces of legislation for tackling homelessness. But this means nothing if people are left on the streets, or forced into unsafe, cramped, temporary accommodation.

In October last year, Green councillors in Glasgow pushed for a winter break for evictions. Gaining support from Labour and SNP councillors, this resulted in a call to the Housing Minister to put a halt to winter evictions, which he disappointingly rejected.

Many of us are now working from home and social media is awash with funny and innovative videos and pictures of people trying, and in some cases failing, to get on with work. But for many in Glasgow their home continues to be a cold, damp and overcrowded place.

When we emerge from the coronavirus outbreak there will need to be a serious re-evaluation of the support all governments provide for their citizens. First amongst these must be a renewed push to eradicate homelessness and improve housing conditions.