Scrap Right to Rent organisations tell Conservative hopefuls

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Righ-to-Rent:

THE candidates to become Conservative Party Leader are being
urged to scrap the controversial Right to Rent scheme.

A coalition of organisations made up of the Residential
Landlords Association, the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants and
the3million which represents EU citizens in the UK have united in calling on
Jeremy Hunt and Boris Johnson to scrap the policy after the High Court ruled it
causes discrimination against British ethnic minorities

Under the policy, private landlords face potential
imprisonment of up to 5 years if they know or have â€œreasonable cause to
believeâ€� that the property they are letting is occupied by someone who
does not have the right to rent in the UK.

It was introduced by Theresa May when Home Secretary as part
of the Home Office’s hostile environment.

The call for its abolition follows damning criticism by the High Court earlier this year that the Right to Rent breaches human rights law because it causes racial discrimination that otherwise would not happen.

Following a Judicial Review of the policy secured by the JCWI and supported by the RLA, the presiding judge concluded that discrimination by landlords was taking place â€œbecause of the Scheme.â€� In his judgment he said thatdiscrimination by landlords was â€œlogical and wholly predictableâ€� when faced with potential sanctions and penalties for getting things wrong.

The Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration has also
concluded the Right to Rent had â€œyet to demonstrate its worth as a tool
to encourage immigration compliance�.

David Smith, Policy Director for the Residential Landlords
Association, said:

“The Right to Rent has been a failure. No one has been
prosecuted under the scheme but it has created a great deal of anxiety for
landlords who do not want to go to prison for getting it wrong.

“Landlords should not be used to cover for the failings in the
UK Border Agencies.�

Nicolas Hatton, CEO of the3million said:

“Two-thirds of EU citizens in the UK live in
private rented housing and will be affected if this failed scheme continues.
 

“We are already seeing that landlords are less likely to
rent to anyone without a British passport, and uncertainty about Brexit
added to the hostile environment will only increase the
discrimination EU citizens are facing. We urge the UK government to scrap
this scheme and end the discrimination.”

Chai Patel, Legal Policy Director of the Joint Council for
the Welfare of Immigrants, said:

“The Home Office is now arguing in its appeal that it is
justified in causing racial discrimination against British ethnic minority
families struggling to find a home. It is arguing that black and brown
British people’s dignity, humanity, and rights can be tossed aside to pursue
Theresa May’s Hostile Environment.  

“That cannot be acceptable in modern Britain. The new Prime
Minister must commit to ending landlord immigration checks, and the
discrimination they causeâ€�.    

·   The full High Court ruling on the Right to Rent can be accessed here

·    JCWI’s briefing to MPs following the High Court judgment here 

·    The RLA’s most recent research on the Right to Rent can be accessed here

·    The Independent Chief Inspectors of Borders and Immigration report on the Right to Rent can be accessed here  

The foreword notes:

“Overall, I found that the RtR scheme had yet to demonstrate
its worth as a tool to encourage immigration compliance, with the Home Office
failing to coordinate, maximise or even measure effectively its use, while at
the same time doing little to address the concerns of stakeholders.�

·  Research by Oxford University’s Migration Observatory notes: â€œThe foreign-born population is almost three times as likely to be in the private rental sector (41% were in this sector in the second quarter of 2017), compared to the UK-born (15%).â€� Further details can be accessed here

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