Yesterday, MSPs voted to reject amendments to the Housing Bill (Scotland) which would have improved security for private renters, with the campaign group Generation Rent labelling the decision a “major backwards step” for private renters.
The changes to the Bill were tabled by Scottish Greens MSP Maggie Chapman. If accepted, they would have increased eviction notice periods for evictions where a landlord wants to sell the property or move in, to four months, with tenants enjoying a protected period from this type of eviction for 12 months following the start of a tenancy.
These changes would have given equal protections to those being brought in for England’s renters through the Renters’ Rights Bill. But, as they were rejected by MSPs, once the Westminster Bill becomes law, renters in Scotland will have the worst eviction notice periods in Britain.
At the current time, if a tenant in Scotland has been in their home for less than six months, they can be evicted with just 28 days’ notice, even when they have played by all the rules set by their landlord. If a tenant has been in their home for more than six months, they can still be evicted through no fault of their own with under three months’ notice (84 days).
In Wales, landlords must give renters six months’ notice if they decide to evict them through no fault of their own.
Short eviction notice periods are fuelling the number of families forced into temporary accommodation in Scotland, which is currently at record levels. But SNP (except Emma Roddick MSP), Liberal Democrat and Conservative MSPs voted against the changes.
During the debate, the Cabinet Secretary for Housing Màiri McAllan said “further work is required to understand the implications of increased notice periods before changes are made”, citing the Scottish Government’s upcoming review of repossession grounds to look at the issue.
But Maggie Chapman MSP said: “Let us be clear that, if those amendments are not supported today, renters in Scotland will be less strongly protected than those south of the border.”
Ben Twomey, Chief Executive at Generation Rent, said:
“Homes are the foundations of our lives. But allowing landlords to turf tenants out of their homes with very little notice shatters those foundations. The impact ripples across society, pushing people into homelessness and placing strain on public services.
“The Scottish Government has rightly been proud of its past record in standing up for tenants. But today represented a major backward step for renters who will soon be looking enviously across the border if the government doesn’t change course.”
Stewart’s* story
Stewart, his partner and their two young children were evicted from their home in Inverness with just three month’s notice, despite living in the home for nearly ten years. The eviction was due to the landlord planning to sell the property.
The short window to find a new home and the lack of affordable options left them, in Stewart’s words, “facing the very real possibility of homelessness”, with the stresses and strains of the situation meaning he “just about had a nervous breakdown”.
The family eventually moved into a tiny flat to avoid homelessness, which Stewart describes as “completely unsuitable for our needs”, with most of their furniture having to be kept in storage.
