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Scottish housing minister 'siding with landlords’ as rent caps to be scrapped, tenants and advisers say

4 February 2025, 07:01 | Updated: 4 February 2025, 12:22

Scottish housing minister is ‘Team Landlord’ as rent caps to be scrapped, tenants and advisers say
Scottish housing minister is ‘Team Landlord’ as rent caps to be scrapped, tenants and advisers say. Picture: Alamy

By Rebecca Brady.

Scotland’s housing secretary is facing calls to resign as LBC learned landlords in Scotland were informed before tenant advice organisations that controversial rent restrictions will end.

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From April 1st, the 12% cap on increasing rents will be scrapped, allowing landlords to set their own rates in Scotland for the first time since 2022.

“We have regular contact with the government as part of our daily work,” John Blackwood, chief executive of the Scottish Association of Landlords (SAL), told LBC.

“As part of those catch ups, the government was keen to emphasise to us that the temporary rent restrictions that were introduced are going to be coming to an end and they wouldn't be renewed at the end of March.

“So that’s, of course, welcome news. It's something that we in the sector have been hoping for, for some time.”

However, tenant adviser Natasha McGourt believes scrapping the temporary restrictions before permanent rent controls are introduced will exacerbate the housing crisis.

“I think the housing minister could reconsider removing this protection,” she said.

“It makes sense to extend it until the bill has passed and it becomes law to avoid creating an even more volatile market than we have already.

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Edinburgh Scotland, UK 28 November 2024.   Minister for Housing Paul McLennan MSP and  at the Scottish Parliament. credit sst/alamy live news
Edinburgh Scotland, UK 28 November 2024. Minister for Housing Paul McLennan MSP and at the Scottish Parliament. credit sst/alamy live news. Picture: Alamy

“Market rates have skyrocketed so dramatically - that was a direct result of a loophole in their legislation. Had you asked me before covid about fair market rent then, absolutely, that was a fair determination on its own for landlords to issue a rent increase. Not now, not now at all.”

Ms McGourt, who sits on the ‘lived experience’ panel helping to shape the new Housing (Scotland) Bill, is calling for housing secretary Paul McLennan to resign if stakeholders weren’t consulted before the decision was taken.

“It tells me that the housing minister is absolutely ‘Team Landlord’,” she said.

“There appears to have been no consultation prior to this announcement with Shelter Scotland, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Citizens Advice, all of which I’d assume would agree that this will only worsen the housing emergency.”

Mr McLennan told LBC he was ‘unaware’ that landlords had been informed the restrictions are set to end. Asked if he consulted with tenant rights and anti-poverty organisations, he said: "I can't speak individually for the likes of Shelter and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

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As I said though, we've been engaging with various stakeholders over this particular matter." The SNP MSP told LBC he apologises if the order in which stakeholders were informed caused offence but he disputes accusations that he is ’Team Landlord’.

"I wouldn't agree with that particular point,” Mr McLennan said.

“I think we've demonstrated in the past and going forward that we support tenants more than any other government in the UK. With the cost of living measures that we brought in, with the extension and, for example, through the discretionary housing payments."

However, several tenants living in Edinburgh have told LBC their rents are already at the limit of affordability.

“It’s been something that they’ve obviously kept quite quiet,” Rhiannon said of the Scottish government’s plans.

Council housing at Winning Quadrant Wishaw
Council housing at Winning Quadrant Wishaw. Picture: Alamy

“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous. If you’re not going to do something to provide affordable housing, like of a reasonable living quality, then how are we supposed to do this?”

Stuart agreed, telling LBC: “It’s shocking, yeah, I mean rent in Edinburgh is ridiculous already. I try to pay my rent in advance as much as possible but it’s always a huge struggle to make rent every month.

“At the moment it’s near enough 100 per cent of my income, but in other months it’s like 50, 60, 70 per cent of my income.

“I guess our tenancy will end at the end of the year and I don’t know the landlord very well but people just tend to take the money they can get and I know there will be 100 people at the door for that flat.”

“I’m probably going to have to move further out of the city which means your cost of transport and everything goes up so I’m fairly certain I will never be on the property ladder, which is kind of heartbreaking,” Rhiannon added.

John Blackwood is urging the Scottish government to introduce an enforcement mechanism for housing legislation in an effort to avoid rogue landlords pushing tenants into excessively expensive leases - like the illegal rent hikes reported last year.

The idea has been welcomed by Natasha McGourt who is founding her own organisation - Tenants Rights Scotland. “It's actually not enforced and that's the problem,” Mr Blackford said.

“So that poor practise, that rogue practise and quite frankly criminal practise, in some cases, just happens and nobody seems to bother about it. And it's only the good ones that actually seem to bear the burden of that.

“Actually they’re operating probably absolutely fine and not increasing the rents to extortionate levels because they don't want to get rid of the tenant and they don't want to make it unaffordable for them, whereby they have to move out.” The Scottish Association of Landlords’ members manage 48% of Scotland’s rental market.