Forty families a day threatened with no-fault evictions since Tories vowed to ban them

theguardian.com:

An estimated 40 families have been threatened with a “no-fault” eviction every day in England in the four years since ministers first promised to scrap them, analysis shows.

The Conservatives first promised to end the practice in 2019, but the government has yet to pass legislation despite repeated promises from ministers and former prime ministers.

Section 21 notices are allowed under the 1988 Housing Act and permit property owners to evict tenants without a reason.

Figures from Labour reveal more than 54,000 households were threatened with eviction from April 2019 – when the pledge was first made to end the practice – to December 2022. This is equivalent to 1,200 every month, with almost 17,000 no-fault evictions taking place over the same period.

Labour has vowed to strengthen renters’ rights, introducing a charter that will block evictions without a good reason and introduce a four-month notice period for landlords

The proposals, which include measures to allow private renters to have pets and roll out a national register of landlords, will be put to a vote in the Commons in the first 100 days of a Labour government.

Paula Barker, the shadow homelessness minister, said: “These shocking figures lay bare the Conservatives’ complete failure to tackle the scourge of homelessness. For years they have promised change but while they dither and delay, families across the country are being kicked out of their homes despite doing nothing wrong.

“Labour wants to see an immediate end to ‘no-fault’ evictions. In government we will abolish section 21, give new rights and protections to tenants, and build more affordable and council homes to return social housing to the second largest form of tenure.”

The government’s own figures show that