Shelter has warned the Government not to delay the Renters (Reform) Bill further after new figures revealed a record 80,000 households faced homelessness between January and March this year.
According to the homelessness charity, the loss of a private tenancy is now the leading cause of homelessness, with section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions fueling instability.
In May, the Government published its Renters (Reform) Bill, which included a ban on no-fault evictions, but it has only reached the second reading stage in Parliament.
Shelter has urged the Government to prioritise the Bill as soon as it returns from summer recess.
The charity has also called on housing secretary Michael Gove to ‘make his ambition to build tens of thousands of new homes for social rent a reality’.
Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: ‘With record numbers of people becoming homeless, the time for empty words on building social homes and overdue promises on ending no fault evictions has long passed.
‘No-fault evictions are fuelling homelessness and throwing thousands of families’ lives into turmoil. We need decisive action, not lip service, before this crisis gets even worse.’
