11^th Jul 2018

Two prominent London politicians are getting behind the campaign to take away landlords and letting agents' power from using Section 21 notices to evict tenants.

A Green Party member of the London Assembly, Sian Berry and Tom Copley a Labour assembly member, pushed through the motion stating that Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions are making private renters' lives a misery and should be abolished. Tenants are worried by the lack of security which may be putting them off of asking landlords to carry out essential work on their rented 'home'.

Both of the politicians are urging the London Mayor to put his political weight behind the campaign to permanently remove S21 from the Housing Act 1988 by lobbying the government.

Sian Berry said: “The Assembly has firmly put its weight behind Generation Rent’s campaign to end S21. London renters need to feel secure in their homes and know they can’t be thrown out on the streets for no reason.

“I’ve known far too many friends and colleagues forced to move out of their homes at really short notice at times when they would least choose to move. Having to move at short notice is one of the worst parts of being a private renter and ending S21 would make a dramatic difference and solve this problem.”

Tom Copley said: “Our tenancy laws were introduced 30 years ago when only one in 10 Londoners rented from a private landlord. Now more than a quarter of us do, including increasing numbers of families with children.

"It is unacceptable that landlords can use S21 to evict tenants for no reason. Private tenants deserve security to protect them from arbitrary or revenge eviction, the fear of which makes tenants reluctant to come forward to complain about substandard housing.

"The government has just announced a consultation on three year private tenancies, but this will be meaningless unless no fault eviction is abolished. I hope the Mayor will use this consultation to urge the government to abolish S21 eviction."

The full text of the motion that the Assembly members hope will kick-start their campaign to the government reads:

“This Assembly welcomes the campaign to end section 21 – the clause of the Housing Act 1988 that allows private landlords to evict tenants without reason. We acknowledge that the threat of a no-fault eviction causes insecurity and stress for Londoners who rent privately and can discourage tenants from complaining about substandard housing. We welcome the action taken by the Scottish government to restrict no-fault evictions. We urge the Mayor to state his backing for the campaign to abolish section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 and to lobby government for this change in the law.”

Richard Merrick of PIMS said: "We wholeheartedly agree with 'rogue' landlords being stopped from evicting tenants without any just cause, but it is utter madness to call for the Section 21 eviction notice to be 'outlawed'.

'It is just another case of landlord bashing by those who have no experience of the private rented sector, but of course it's great for raising one's profile.

"We are sure that some solicitors will have a 'field day' with a Human Rights defence for their clients who had reneged on paying their rent for many months."

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