Gove vows to ban Section 21 evictions by the next General Election
The Housing Secretary Michael Gove has pledged to ban Section 21 'no-fault' evictions in England by the next General Election, following a spike in repossession numbers.
According to new Ministry of Justice data, repossessions after no-fault eviction orders in England rose by 49% last year.
Mr Gove said he would 'outlaw' the practice of evicting tenants without a reason and would invest in the court system to ensure enforcement.
We will outlaw it and put money into the courts
Mr Gove told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme: "We will have outlawed it and we will have put the money into the courts in order to ensure that they can enforce that."
The Conservatives pledged to end so-called no-fault evictions in 2019, but the government said last year it could not implement a ban until the court system was improved.
This sparked fears among campaigners that court reforms could take years - and the government was delaying the ban.
The ban would be part of the Renters (Reform) Bill which was introduced in Parliament last October and is still being debated.
Limit the grounds for evictions to specific cases
The Bill would limit the grounds for evictions to specific cases, such as when landlords want to sell or move into their properties.
Mr Gove also says he wants to stop the 'abuse' of no-fault evictions by 'a small minority of unscrupulous landlords who use the threat of eviction either to jack up rents or to silence people who are complaining about the quality of their homes.'
The National Residential Landlords Association has urged the government to improve the court system to allow landlords to recover their properties faster when they have valid reasons to evict tenants.
Labour said the Bill 'was nowhere to be seen'
The report stage of the Bill was scheduled for completion by early February, but Labour said it 'was nowhere to be seen', as the Commons Leader, Penny Mordaunt, ignored the legislation when she announced the Parliament's agenda.
Angela Rayner, Labour's deputy leader and shadow housing secretary, said: "These are yet more weasel words from Michael Gove after years of broken promises.
"The Tories have ruined the justice system, and now they are using their own failure to endlessly postpone fulfilling their promises to renters in the most dishonest way."
'Michael Gove's words will mean nothing'
Daisy Cooper, the deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: "Michael Gove's words will mean nothing to those who have waited for so long for this vital reform.
"This Government has neglected the housing crisis in this country, and after 16 housing ministers, people are still facing the same issues.
"Renters should not have to risk losing their homes for no reason anymore."
Tom Darling, the campaign manager of the Renters' Reform Coalition, said: "It shouldn't be a big deal to say you'll do something that was in your manifesto, but it shows how much the Government have been stalling on this that it is.”
He added: "We will make sure the Government stick to this promise."
The news will disappoint a lot of landlords
The managing director of Accommodation for Students, Simon Thompson, said: "News that section 21 evictions will be outlawed will disappoint a lot of landlords.
"It is important that landlords can get possession of their property when they need to."
He added: "It's also important to understand that Section 21 isn't a 'no reason eviction', it means no reason has been given.
"This is a quicker route than Section 8 but using Section 21 means the landlord has a reason whether that is for arrears or wanting to move into the property - there is usually a reason for possession."
