Views sought on plans to deliver fairer rented sector

The proposals, which are open to public consultation, aim to deliver a fairer rented sector. They include:

• increasing penalties for illegal evictions and stronger enforcement
• restricting evictions during winter
• giving tenants greater flexibility to personalise their homes and keep pets
• developing a national system of rent controls for the private rented sector
• introducing a new Housing Standard to apply to all homes
• establishing a private rented sector regulator to uphold these standards and ensure the system is fair for both landlords and tenants
  setting minimum standards for energy efficiency, making homes cheaper to heat while contributing to Scotland’s climate change targets
• The measures form part of the Housing to 2040 strategy, published in March this year, and take forward several commitments made in the co-operation agreement with the Scottish Green Party. The results of the consultation will feed into the final version of the strategy to be published next year, with elements of the proposals put to the Scottish Parliament in a Housing Bill in 2023.

Tenants’ rights minister Patrick Harvie said: “Now is the time to do more for people who rent their homes, whether they are renting privately, from the council or from a housing association. Delivering a new deal for tenants is central to our ambitions for a fairer Scotland, tackling child poverty and meeting climate change targets.

“Above all else it will significantly improve the lives of Scotland’s tenants, giving them more stability, more choice over where they live and how they decorate their homes, and the confidence that their home will be of a high quality. At the same time it will recognise the interests of good quality, responsible landlords.

“We will be working in partnership with landlords, letting agents, tenants and others to deliver this strategy, and we want to gather the broadest range of views. I would encourage anyone with an interest to respond to our consultation.”