Apr

BREAKING: Mayor of London calls for extreme measures to protect renters during and after crisis

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Sadiq Khan has today said that the government should introduce a ‘triple lock’ of measure that would make it almost impossible for landlords to evict many tenants after the Coronavirus has eased.

The Mayor of London Sadiq
Khan has called for the government to go even further to protect tenants and wants
to see a ‘triple lock’ of measures that would make it almost impossible for
landlords to evict tenants after the Coronavirus pandemic has passed.

Khan says he wants to see the
government:

Increase benefit support for renters through higher Local Housing Allowance rates and a suspended Benefit Cap.
Permanently ban private landlords from evicting tenants who have run up rent arrears because of the Coronavirus pandemic and making Section 8 arrears’ grounds discretionary in court proceedings.
Bring forward ban of Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions.

“For too long, renters in
the capital and across the country have been denied the security they need in
the place they call home. The current crisis has brought these issues into
stark relief,” says Khan.

“With millions of low
paid renters in London now facing increased financial uncertainty we face a
ticking timebomb of debt, arrears and widespread evictions once the suspension
in court proceedings is lifted.

The Mayor’s call for action is being backed by legal charity Safer Renting, who spokesperson Ben Reeve-Lewis, says:“From what we are seeing on the ground, Government guidance for landlords and tenants to work together reasonably during this crisis isn’t getting through to the rogue landlord market.

“We are seeing no let-up
in cases of harassment and illegal eviction. It’s just business as usual.”

Khan was due to face re-election on May 7^th but has now been given an extra year in office as Mayor of London after the election was postponed until May 2021.

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