Vale of Clwyd MP Dr James Davies has welcomed measures being taken by the UK Government to ensure the rental market is vibrant in England, and is calling on the Welsh Government to provide similar support to landlords and renters in Wales.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Wednesday, James praised the UK Government’s support for renters during the pandemic and questioned the Minister for Housing, Christopher Pincher, over planned actions to encourage new landlords to the marketplace and to prevent existing ones from leaving.
James said:
“I commend the Government for the support they have given to renters during a difficult pandemic, particularly protecting them from the minority of landlords who can be unreasonable at times. Of course, the future wellbeing of renters will depend on a vibrant rental market, so what plans does the Minister have to ensure that the rental market is vibrant?”
The Minister agreed that a vibrant rental market is important to the economy and to renters and stressed “We must not act in any way, either individually or cumulatively, to drive landlords out of the marketplace.”
He also said that the UK Government will be bringing forward the Renters’ Reform Bill in due course, “which will ensure that there is a proper balance of rights and responsibilities between landlords and tenants.”
Speaking afterwards James said:
“The pandemic has caused much uncertainty for both landlords and tenants and I was pleased to hear of the measures being taken by the UK Government to help them going forward.
“However, with housing being devolved to Wales these measures will only apply to England and I therefore urge the Welsh Government to take steps to ensure a vibrant rental market here.
“Wales is facing a housing crisis, and has been for a number of years now. It is imperative that there are plenty of good quality rental properties available, including in the private rented sector, and as the Minister stated the only way this is going to be achieved is by providing existing landlords with support so that they are not tempted to leave the marketplace. There are many great private landlords in the Vale of Clwyd and it would be a great shame to lose them.”
