In our first response to the government consultation: “Social housing rents”, we made it clear that there is no acceptable, just, or fair way to raise tenant rents or service charges.
The second response to the consultation: “A Decent Homes Standard in the private rented sector”, focused on the need for the government to implement a much more robust and proportionate quality standard in the private rented sector (PRS). DR UK argued that the Decent Homes Standard must be used so that homes become much more accessible, are in better quality, and are warmer as winter sets in.
These consultations come at a time of an acute and dangerous crisis in the housing market. News outlets have continued to report that the Government is delaying the Renters Reform Bill, which was set to give renters more rights in the private rented sector. This news comes as a recent report on the rental market from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism found that:
- 98% of those [properties] advertised over a single month were beyond the means of people in receipt of universal credit or housing benefit.
- In 19 areas across Britain – including central London, Swindon, Ipswich and Tameside – we did not find a single affordable property throughout all of July
- On average, LHA would need to be increased by £194 a month to meet the 30% target. But in some areas it was much more – those looking to rent a two-bedroom property in central London would need an additional £1,444 a month.
Mikey Erhardt, at Disability Rights UK said, "If the Government is serious about further delaying the Renters Reform Bill then not only is it betraying its voters and Disabled renters across the country, but it is committing to putting us directly in harm’s way.
The consequences of the housing crisis are stark and frightening. We urgently need reforms that create a safer, fairer, and more accessible housing system. Disabled tenants need certainty and consistency in our housing situations for our independence.
The Government must stop pursuing this and commit to emergency measures, including a rent freeze and eviction ban across all tenures, alongside the longer-term plan of the Renters Reform Bill, or else it will be fuelling an ever-deepening crisis in the housing sector”
