10:18 AM, 9th October 2024, About 2 months ago 7
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The Renters’ Rights Bill will “wreck the rental market and drive up rents” warns Kemi Badenoch.
In a letter to The Telegraph, Ms Badenoch slams Labour for their one-sided view of landlords, accusing them of treating all landlords as “exploiters.”
She points out the irony that the only MP in Parliament found guilty of mistreating tenants is Labour’s own Jas Athwal.
Ms Badenoch, now the Shadow Housing Secretary, claims she opposed elements of the Conservative government’s Renters’ (Reform) Bill, including the abolition of fixed-term tenancies.
Ms Badenoch criticises Labour for thinking “more regulation is the answer to every problem.”
She tells The Telegraph: “Labour’s new Renters’ Rights Bill shows they don’t understand the value of property rights and they can’t see landlords as anything other than exploiters.
“Funny, as the only MP in this Parliament who has been found to mistreat tenants is one of their own – Jas Athwal.
“We all want to see a better deal for tenants but, as ever, Labour thinks more regulation is the answer to every problem.
“Their Bill will reduce the supply of rental homes, drive up rents and deter the building of new homes for hard-pressed young people.
Ms Badenoch claims “Labour do not understand the truth that landlords provide a vital service to the property market”.
She tells The Telegraph: “Landlords provide a vital service. The private rented sector is vital for many who can’t yet afford a mortgage, for young people and those who need to move for work.
“The overwhelming majority of landlords are people who care for their tenants and ask only that their property be respected and a fair rent is paid.”
Ms Badenoch adds the abolition of fixed-term tenancies will cause chaos in the rental market.
She said: “Instead of landlord and tenant freely entering into a contract they can renew when the terms expire, all tenancies will continue indefinitely until terminated by the tenant – there will be no more fixed-term tenancies.
“If a landlord wants to recover possession of their property they will have to obtain a court order.
“Worse than that, the landlord can only apply to get their own property back on the basis of a limited list of reasons.
“What sort of market is it where you can’t decide what to do with your own property? This is a violation of the principle of freedom of contract.”
Ms Badenoch says she opposed the Renters (Reform) Bill abolition of fixed-term tenancies and wanted more balanced reforms that protected both renters and landlords.
She tells The Telegraph: “Other ministers and backbenchers agreed with me that we should fix the housing market to benefit renters without violating property rights.
“While we were rightly proud that the Conservatives oversaw the building of a million new homes, this was simply not enough.
“A functioning housing market is in everyone’s interests and this is what Labour should be focusing on.”
Ms Badenoch’s full letter to The Telegraph can be seen here (for some users this may be behind a paywall)
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Dylan Morris
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Sign Up10:45 AM, 9th October 2024, About 2 months ago
Well it has been her Party that has treated landlords as exploiters for the last 14 years.
Jason
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Sign Up11:15 AM, 9th October 2024, About 2 months ago
They started the ball rolling in this area (should never have crumbled to pressure from Shelter/GR on S21) not to mention S24. Too late now, labour are going to make it even more challenging.
Gromit
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Sign Up12:22 PM, 9th October 2024, About 2 months ago
Someone recently said "judge them by their actions notbytheir words"
Badenoch was part of the last few Landlord bashing Tory Governments and supported many anti-Landlord measures. You cannot trust what she says!
dismayed landlord
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Sign Up13:14 PM, 9th October 2024, About 2 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Jason at 09/10/2024 - 11:15
Reaping as they have sown. No sympathy for the devils!
Neil P
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Sign Up13:50 PM, 9th October 2024, About 2 months ago
I find the biggest joke is the tory leader candidates banging on about controlling immigration...as the levels are adding to the housing supply problems. Who let it get out of control in the first place?!
We need immigration to supply the job market and fund our universities, no doubt about that, but I feel there was never any joined-up thinking as to how it would work on the creaking housing market, NHS, dentists, GPs etc etc.
The tories revised their net immigration figures soon after they were issued a few years ago - they had under-calculated by 250,000 people - a town the size of Ipswich. They had no idea.
Labour policy and anti-landlord rhetoric will make things worse in the PRS, when they need us most. Crazy. We just want to be decent landlords making a modest profit for our work/investment.
Steve Masters
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Sign Up14:45 PM, 9th October 2024, About 2 months ago
It's not often I agree with a politician but what she says about property is all true.
It's what she says about politics I'm dubious about.
Stuart Smithers
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Sign Up16:46 PM, 10th October 2024, About 2 months ago
Shame Kemi wasn't around in Gove's place. He started this ball rolling with his RRB. I know May commited to S21 going in eary 2019 so his hands were a bit tied, but the old RRB was dreadful. I'm not even bothering to understand the new bill.