The leader of the Green Party says she wants rent controls which would restrict rises for sitting tenants and give them “significant increases in security” such as longer tenancies.
Natalie Bennett says her party has already achieved one success with the policy - persuading the London Assembly housing committee to back rent controls.
“We need to ensure private landlords provide houses fit for living in. But above all we need to regard houses as homes, a basic right, not a financial cash cow for the few” says Bennett in a letter to The Guardian.
The Green Party is not as ‘fringe’ as many observers think. It has one MP, two Members of the European Parliament, two London assembly members and 139 local councillors.
It also controls Brighton council (despite bitter in-fighting between Green Party factions) and it holds the deputy mayor position in London. At the last general election it fielded 310 candidates and won 265,243 votes.
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Comments
It's a good job there is no chance of the "fringe" Green Party ever being elected then.
The vast majority of landlords do provide houses fit to live in. A large majority of landlords are also only doing it to fund their retirement and they certainly aren't a financial cash cow. Most properties barely cover their own costs and only bear fruit after many years.
If politicians want to make a difference they should concentrate on weeding out the few rogues (and we know who they are) and leave the majority alone to provide the 'basic right' of a home to those who are too lazy to get off their backsides and find a job so they can buy their own place.