Overcrowding in Scotland’s private rented sector is soaring, say Labour
Scotland’s private renters are increasingly being squeezed into properties with the number of overcrowded households more than doubling since 2012.
The figures were obtained by Scottish Labour who have pledged a “Mary Barbour law” – after the 1915 Glasgow rent strikes leader – to radically change the private sector.
A property is overcrowded if there are insufficient bedrooms for occupants. In 2012 10,000 households in the private rented sector were defined as overcrowded. By 2016, the year for which the latest figures are available, the figure had soared to 23,000.
Scottish Labour’s housing spokesperson Pauline Mcneill said: “More and more of Scotland’s private renters are finding themselves squeezed into unsuitable accommodation. We cannot continue to ignore conditions in the fastest growing part of the housing sector.
“The private rented sector has grown dramatically in the last 15 years but our laws haven’t kept pace.
“Renting should be a secure and viable long-term housing option. The means to live in a location you choose and a way to save up for a deposit if you want to buy a home. However, for too many people it is none of these things.
“That’s why Labour is proposing a ‘Mary Barbour law’ to reform the sector, so no-one is overpaying for an overcrowded property.”