Renters’ Rights Bill

Jacob Collier Excerpts

Tuesday 14th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Jessica Toale (Bournemouth West) (Lab)]

I thank the Minister for introducing the Bill, and all hon. Members on the Bill Committee who gave their time to consider with gravity this long-overdue reform, which will provide greater security and stability for millions of renters across the country. The Bill is particularly important to my constituency, where more than 31% of households are in the private rental sector. That figure is as high as 55% in some wards such as Bournemouth Central, and up to 45% in the wards of Winton, Westbourne and West Cliff.

The private rental sector should provide people with flexibility and be a stepping stone to home ownership, and it should support our local economies, but for too many, as we have heard from many hon. Members, it exacerbates instability and adds financial stress, locking people out of building the savings that they need to get on the housing ladder, as well as adding to mental health issues. That is particularly salient in my constituency, where the cost of housing is disproportionately expensive, given the wages that people can command. The average rent and property price is above the national average in Bournemouth, but average wages are 5% lower than the national average.

The Bill is timely, because in recent months I have been deeply concerned about the growing number of residents who have been in touch to raise issues about housing, to the point that we are hosting three additional housing super-surgeries, aimed at providing constituents with the opportunity to share specific issues, and at giving them advice and guidance from many local organisations that specialise in these issues.

I want to raise a few issues relating to the amendments that many hon. Members will find apply in their constituencies. The first is poor-quality accommodation. In my constituency, one young woman and her daughter have been bounced from mouldy bedsit to mouldy bedsit while they wait for an appropriate social home. In the process, the woman’s daughter has developed asthma. I welcome the reforms relating to the decent homes standard and Awaab’s law.

Lots of people have been in touch who are being forced into homelessness by eye-watering rental increases or section 21 notices. The average increase last year for a one-bed flat in my constituency was 10%. Another young woman and her daughter were made homeless by a section 21 notice following an unaffordable rent increase. She has been unable to find anything that meets her physical and mental health needs—but in any case, she cannot meet the up-front cost of much private rental sector accommodation in our constituency. I welcome the amendment to address up-front costs. Her situation is compounded by long social housing waiting lists. I welcome the wider housing reforms that the Government are bringing forward, including the increased targets for social housing and the wider house building programme.

There are almost 20,000 students living in my constituency. I recently met student union representatives from Bournemouth University and the Arts University Bournemouth, who told me about the struggles their students face, from the stress of finding an appropriate place to live to the timetables for finding accommodation and the struggle to rent. Many students are forced to couch surf because they cannot afford the deposit money or do not have a guarantor who meets the requirements.

Bournemouth is one of the top 10 most expensive places to be a student in the UK; some 95% of the maintenance loan is eaten up by housing costs, leaving many students with about £4 a week afterwards. That is not a sustainable situation. I therefore welcome the measures to protect student tenancies and address the up-front costs for students. It is my hope that in the longer run, many students will benefit from these reforms, will fall in love with Bournemouth and want to stay, and will be able to find appropriate and affordable places to live.

As we have heard, good and responsible landlords have nothing to fear from these reforms. I welcome the measures to give landlords more clarity and a better understanding of their legal obligations, and to address repossession rights. The abolition of section 21, Awaab’s law and the up-front cost provisions will allow my constituents and many across the country to breathe a sigh of relief. I therefore welcome the Bill and new clause 13.

[Jacob Collier (Burton and Uttoxeter) (Lab)]

For years, renters have faced instability, insecurity and, in many cases, exploitation. Today, we are taking a decisive step towards confronting these injustices. It was a pleasure to serve on the Bill Committee; I believe that we will look back on the Bill as one of the proudest achievements of this Labour Government.

I am proud to support the Government’s new clause 13, which limits the security deposit that a landlord can demand from tenants to just one month’s rent. This change addresses one of the most significant barriers for renters in my constituency: the crippling up-front cost of high security deposits. Previously, landlords were able to demand deposits of up to six months’ rent, a practice that has often priced out renters and left many unable to secure a home. By capping deposits at just one month’s rent, we are making it far easier for tenants to move into their home without facing a financial burden that has long been a barrier to entry to the rental market. New clause 13 is a vital step in making the rental market more accessible and affordable, particularly to those who have been excluded from the market due to high costs. This change will ensure that renters are treated fairly and can more easily get the stability that they need, without facing financial hardship.

The Bill is just one part of a package of measures that support renters and tackle the housing crisis in this country. Those measures include getting on with building those 1.5 million new homes through planning reform; an industrial strategy that gives us the tools to build those homes; and the technical excellence colleges that will deliver skilled people. This Government recognise that the housing crisis is not a problem that can be solved in isolation.

As one of the younger Members of this House, I am part of a generation that feels that we have been trapped in renting. Recent data shows that under-30s are spending more than 30% of their income on rent, which is more than any other group. The people who told us to stop eating avocados and cancel Netflix were not serious about confronting the gravity of the situation. They failed my generation; it is this Government who are taking action today.

The previous Conservative Government had ample opportunity to enact meaningful reform, and I note that Conservatives continue to fail to stand up for renters. Despite their promises to abolish section 21 no-fault evictions—a leading cause of homelessness—they failed to deliver. Instead, under their watch, Parliament was clocking off early while the problems in the country mounted up. They retreated from their housing commitments, and prioritised the appeasement of powerful landlord interests over the welfare of millions of renters.

On Second Reading, the Leader of the Opposition said that resolving the housing crisis hinges solely on increasing housing supply and reducing immigration. Need I remind her that her Government did the exact opposite? In response to comments from the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (David Simmonds), let me note that the Government have already increased housing targets and acted decisively to address illegal migration. However, I reject the premise that renters rights’ should be contingent on these factors alone.

The protection and empowerment of renters is entirely independent of such matters.

As we heard from Shelter and Generation Rent in the Bill Committee, we need to rebalance the power between landlords and tenants. In recent years the balance has favoured landlords over tenants, but the Bill and the Government amendments introduce several key reforms designed to rebalance that relationship. For renters in my constituency, the Bill presents transformative change: families will no longer face the fear of sudden, arbitrary evictions and can truly make their rented properties their homes.