The Tory landlords determined to kill the Renters Reform Bill

Changes risk making tenants homeless and housing more expensive, MPs tell Mattie Brignal and Ruby Hinchliffe

Tory rent reforms risk making tenants homeless and housing more expensive, landlord MPs have warned. Momentum is growing to torpedo the Renters Reform Bill, a landmark piece of legislation poised to abolish no- fault evictions and introduce rolling tenancies, putting an end to fixed- term contracts. Critics have called the proposals an attack on landlords.

Michael Gove, the Housing Secretary, vowed last month to pass the Bill before a general election this year. But with time running out – and ministers and backbench MPs at loggerheads over its final form – the Bill is believed to be close to collapse.

About 50 backbenchers have put forward draft amendments, which risks exacerbating fractures in the Tory party.

Currently, landlords can use a section 21 notice to evict a tenant without going through the courts as long as they give two months’ notice. However, under new plans, they will need to seek court permission before an eviction. Landlords, including some sitting on the Commons benches, fear this could add months to evictions with courts still struggling to clear a pandemic-era backlog.

Under reforms, tenants who fall into arrears will also have a black mark placed against them – making it tougher to find a property in the future.

Marco Longhi, Conservative MP for Dudley North and a landlord himself, said while the Bill was “well-meaning” it would backfire on the very tenants aimed to help.

He added: “There will be a sustained move of private landlords exiting the market. It’s already happening, because they think it’s easier to invest elsewhere.”

“A smaller pool of rental homes will lead to higher prices. That’s a simple economic fact. We need to build homes … Parts of this Bill are bad for tenants.” Mr Longhi said: “I wish the Government would have involved all MPs – especially those of us who actually have a lot of experience in property.”

Eighty-seven MPs declared income from homes earning over £10,000 in rent last year, according to research by the campaign group 38 Degrees. Of these, 68 were Conservative, meaning one in five (20pc) of all Tory MPs are landlords.

Chris Norris, of the National Residential Landlords Association, said: “There’s criticism about the number of landlord MPs, but it should be beneficial that we leverage the wealth of experience we have in Parliament – from landlords running businesses to those doing case work on the part of tenants.”

Soaring interest rates and a decade of shrinking tax relief have already hit landlords in the pocket. The worry is that this Bill will be another hammer- blow for property owners feeling the pinch.

There are signs that many have already sold up. Landlords’ share of the mortgage market has slumped to just 7.5pc, the lowest level in 13 years.

The number of new landlords instructing estate agents, a leading indicator for new rental stock coming on to the market, has remained in negative territory since 2021, and is down 18pc over the past three months, according to industry body the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Critics argue that it is not only landlords who stand to lose out. The black mark on a tenant’s record following a court judgment would prevent many from finding somewhere else to live with them ending up on the streets, according to another landlord Tory MP backing the amendments.

He said: “Local authorities won’t help them and this will only add to the homelessness problem. The advantage to tenants of section 21 is that it’s no-fault, so even if they haven’t paid that won’t get written down.”

Jessica Parry, a partner at law firm Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, said that as well as increasing the risk of homelessness, forcing evictions through courts would end up costing tenants more.

She added: “Currently, landlords just write off arrears if they evict a tenant. Now landlords will claim arrears as they’re going to court anyway. [Going to court] will be slow. If a tenant stops paying it could take a year to get the property back. It’s a massive risk for landlords.”

Polly Neate, the chief executive of the charity Shelter, accused landlords of holding the Bill hostage. She added: “It is outrageous the Government would allow the Bill to be held hostage by a small minority of MPs, many of them landlords, while renters are put through hell.”

Tom Darling, of the Renters’ Reform Coalition, said the Bill would help to rebalance the “unequal relationship that results in tenants afraid to ask for basic repairs, stuck in unhealthy homes and unable to put down roots.”