Tenants and trade unions have called on First Minister John Swinney to follow through with promised rent controls as housing costs soar in Scots cities.
Living Rent along with leaders from the Scottish Trade Union Congress, UNISON, UNITE, RMT GMB, UCU, PCS, ASLEF and NUS urged the Scottish Government to reaffirm its commitment to introducing rent caps in order to stop more tenants falling into poverty.
In an open letter sent to the SNP leader, the unions called for an urgent end to the housing crisis. The letter states that “unaffordable rents are a key driver of poverty” and that the Scottish Government has a chance to show what a “progressive response to the housing crisis looks like”.
It reads: “Dear First Minister John Swinney, Cabinet Secretary Shirley Ann Sommerville and Minister Paul McLennan, we, the undersigned, are writing to you to emphasise the urgent necessity of introducing effective rent controls in Scotland.
“Forty years on, we are still reeling from Thatcher’s privatisation of council homes and the ending of rent controls. Eight local authorities have declared local housing emergencies, with rising homelessness, spiralling rents, overall disrepair of our housing stock and increasing numbers of people without a stable tenure, or in overcrowded homes. The Scottish Government has declared a national housing emergency as a result of the systemic pressures facing Scotland’s tenants.
“Homelessness is rising month on month with local authorities failing to meet their statutory duties to people seeking homeless assistance. One of the driving factors of homelessness is the inability to meet rent. This is leading to evictions across the country and local authorities buckling financially under the strain.
“Rents have doubled in the last ten years for most private tenants while wages have stagnated. This has dramatic impacts on the most vulnerable, with nearly ten thousand children in temporary accommodation as of September 2023. We know that rent increases disproportionately affect women, young people, people of colour, single parents, disabled people and migrants. We also know that unaffordable rents are a major driver of poverty. Housing costs are the largest financial outgoing in most households, and while low pay is the main cause of escalating poverty rates, our market-driven housing system is the main driver of both poverty and wealth. Scotland’s lowest paid workers are forced to pay a significant proportion of their incomes on rent, with those on the minimum wage paying 50% or more of their take-home pay, often on poor quality, badly insulated housing.
“More and more of our members are struggling to make ends meet – this must end and you have the power to act. If your government is serious about ending the housing emergency and child poverty, robust and meaningful rent controls must be part of the solution. International evidence shows that well-designed rent controls have the potential to decrease inequality, to support private tenants’ security of tenure, and to improve the quality of housing stock overall.”
It comes as data shows that between 2010 and 2023, rents across the country have increased by 51.6%. In some council areas, increases are even sharper. In Lothian rent increased 79.3%, and in Greater Glasgow rent increased 86.2%. By contrast, inflation was 45.7% during the same period.
Homelessness stemming from the private sector has increased by 22% since 2022. The Scottish Homelessness Monitor suggests that homelessness could rise by a third this year.
Due to the pressure of unaffordable rents, rising homelessness, lack of social housing and chronic disrepair, eight local authorities and the Scottish government have declared housing emergencies.
Living Rent’s National Campaign’s Officer, Ruth Gilbert said: “Tenants need rent controls. Decades of poor regulation and a reliance on the free market has seen landlords hike up rents to eye-watering prices. Meanwhile, our wages have stagnated and the cost of living overall has pushed people further into poverty.
“Current regulation is simply not strong enough. Every day landlords are hiking up already unaffordable rents. They cannot be trusted to regulate themselves. International evidence shows that rent controls decrease inequality, improve private tenants’ security of tenure, and improve the quality of housing stock overall.
“The government has already published their plans for innovative, bold, and effective rent controls. They now need to put their money where their mouth is and commit to introducing rent controls – as promised before the end of this Parliament – to ensure that Scotland’s housing meets the needs of tenants.”
STUC General Secretary, Roz Foyer, said: The Scottish Government may have declared a housing emergency, but if that is to mean more than words, then it is absolutely crucial that it comes with both investment in social housing and regulation of rents.”
“Housing is a human right and rather than bow to pressure from landlords, the Scottish Government must implement a proper system of rent controls.”
The Record has approached the Scottish Government for comment.
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