Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has written to the Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick urging him to come forward with a credible plan to ensure that no one loses their home because of Coronavirus.
During the crisis, evictions have been banned, but this is due to be lifted on Sunday (20 September).
Jenrick previously promised “no renter who has lost income due to coronavirus will be forced out of their home, nor will any landlord face unmanageable debts”, but it is unclear how this will be possible once the ban is lifted.
Under current law, any renter who is more than two months in arrears will be automatically evicted through the courts. Shelter estimates that as many as 230 000 renters will face a Covid-eviction because they have fallen into arrears since March.
Labour has called on the Government to pass emergency legislation to prevent automatic evictions through the courts, and many other organisations have put forward proposals but the Government is yet to put any scheme in place.
Andrew Gwynne said:
“The Coronavirus crisis has plunged many into severe financial difficulties, with many struggling to pay their rent through absolutely no fault of their own.
“The evictions ban was a welcome temporary solution but it is appalling that the Government have failed to come up with a credible plan to deal with this issue in the past few months and even worse that they are ending the ban without anything else in place.
“The Government promised that nobody would be forced out of their home due to lost income. With the ban ending on Sunday, they need urgently to ensure that a plan is in place to avoid this.”