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A New Deal for Tenants: Rents Down, Rights Up!

  • Scotland’s tenants need homes we can afford, so that we’re not priced out of our communities.
  • We need security of tenure, not just a place we can stay for a while.
  • We need homes that are warm, so that heating them doesn’t cost the earth.
  • We need access to justice and better enforcement, so that we can defend ourselves when landlords treat us unfairly. 

The Scottish Government has promised to introduce rent controls and greater rights for tenants in this Parliament.
Between December 2021 and April 2022, the Scottish Government consulted on proposed changes to the law.

As Scotland's tenants union, we demanded:

  • AFFORDABLE HOMES: a point-based system of rent controls to bring down housing costs and improve housing quality and a greater supply of social housing

  • QUALITY HOMES: greater and clearer penalties for landlords who refuse to make repairs, as well as clearer incentives for improvements such as energy efficiency

  • SECURE HOMES: greater protections for tenants, including banning winter evictions, making all grounds discretionary and introducing meaningful penalties for breaches of the law

  • HOMES THAT ARE OURS: the right to make it ours by not facing undue restrictions on what we can do, such as having pets or redecorating

  • STRONGER VOICES FOR TENANTS: control over our homes, which means making rent consultation results binding, and ensuring we don’t face repercussions for exercising our rights

Get in touch if you want to get involved locally and push for change. 

6,152 endorsements
5,000 endorsements

Will you endorse Living Rent's response?


3379

  • Aisha Kanu
    endorsed 2024-01-23 21:24:01 +0000
    Affordable rent, in healthy living conditions
  • Fay McConnell
    endorsed 2023-12-18 23:49:58 +0000
  • Maria Haro-Matas
    endorsed 2023-11-19 20:15:45 +0000
  • Ingrid Pessoa Bighetti
    endorsed 2023-08-29 18:23:16 +0100
  • David Gillian
    endorsed 2023-08-11 00:36:02 +0100
  • Cristina Samuel
    endorsed 2023-05-07 14:32:44 +0100
    Affordable, good quality homes for tenants, more power to tenants, a limit on how much Landlords can profit housing which should be a basic human right. There needs to be strict rent caps to ensure that the private rental sector is centred around the people living in the home, not the person profiting from it. HMO flats also shouldn’t be able to be rented with joint tenancies, it gives too much power to landlords and disregards tenants needs.
  • Scott Warrander
    endorsed 2023-05-07 14:28:44 +0100
    Strict rent caps to ensure homes are affordable.
  • Glenna Jones
    endorsed 2023-03-11 18:30:25 +0000
  • Fenella Gabrysch
    endorsed 2023-01-17 13:03:53 +0000
  • Theresa Hughes
    endorsed 2022-09-22 15:33:30 +0100
    As the President of Pioneer Village Tenants Association, in Chicago, IL USA. We fully endorse and support Scotland’s Tenant Association – “RENTS DOWN, RIGHTS UP”
  • Laura Mills
    endorsed 2022-09-13 09:09:26 +0100
  • David McGill
    endorsed 2022-09-07 13:56:23 +0100
  • Ram Salafia
    endorsed 2022-09-02 18:52:09 +0100
  • Max McDonald
    endorsed 2022-08-20 20:08:21 +0100
  • Maria Elena Torres-Quevedo
    endorsed 2022-08-17 20:34:08 +0100
  • Stephen Gill-Murphy
    endorsed 2022-08-09 16:20:29 +0100
    Affordable homes, social housing and tenant control over the places that we live.
  • Patrick Lennard
    endorsed 2022-08-09 12:43:17 +0100
    Lowered rents, and accommodation-based climate action (i.e. building glazing and insulation)
  • Stefan Mathias Koks
    endorsed 2022-07-31 10:28:56 +0100
    Affordable rent, safety and fair treatment.
  • Ruggiero Guida
    endorsed 2022-07-28 17:36:24 +0100
    Affordable, quality and energy efficient homes
  • Samuel Entwistle
    endorsed 2022-07-24 00:12:45 +0100
  • Jamie Robertson
    endorsed 2022-07-23 22:40:11 +0100
    Housing that is secure liveable and fair
  • Mike Wood
    endorsed 2022-07-23 11:42:16 +0100
  • Elle Walker
    endorsed 2022-07-21 14:41:07 +0100
    Affordable, quality homes.
  • Leonie Gray
    endorsed 2022-07-15 12:37:40 +0100
    Decent rental, affordable properties for all .
  • Grace Stevens
    endorsed 2022-06-30 20:35:52 +0100
    Affordable homes

    Social Housing

    Secure Homes
  • Suckling Stephen
    endorsed 2022-06-19 05:19:55 +0100
    Accessable safe and affordable accommodation for all. Additional support for vulnerable people, children and families with regards to tenants rights and financial services.

    Clearer regulation in the sector concerning government and landlords responsibilities. Reduction of property profiteering e.g. ensuring that there’s a real quantifiable and equal balance of homes available to the public and that property companies, letting agencies, property developers, mortgage brokers and individuals wishing to invest in property etc do not price out individuals and families of their communities.

    I also strongly feel that all rented properties should be environmentally sound and fit for purpose with regards to effective insulation, ventilation, heating and other basic amenities such as effective water, electricity and Internet connection.
  • Rachel Mach
    endorsed 2022-06-18 12:23:12 +0100
    Affordable homes
  • Michael Mulready
    endorsed 2022-06-12 05:52:31 +0100
    Rent control over Housing Associations so that so-called “affordable rents” are actually affordable – not for people on 6 figure salaries but for those living below the poverty line
  • Martyna Kampa
    endorsed 2022-06-10 09:41:55 +0100
    Social Housing
  • Matthew Paul
    endorsed 2022-06-09 12:17:15 +0100
    1. Affordable rent

    2. Decoration and Pet rights for long term tennants