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Robert Jenrick has confirmed that the new tenant support measures will prevent tenants from being evicted until after Christmas.
The government has changed the law to increase the notice periods to six months, which means that tenants who receive notice can stay in their homes during the winter while they find alternative support or accommodation.
Exceptions will only apply ‘in the most egregious cases’, even when tenants have shown antisocial behavior or have committed fraud.
The Housing Secretary also confirmed that sheriffs cannot enforce evictions in an area in a local lockdown that includes a restriction on gathering at homes.
Jenrick said: “We have protected tenants during the pandemic by banning evictions for six months, the longest eviction ban in the UK.
Robert Jenrick has confirmed that the new tenant support measures will prevent tenants from being evicted until after Christmas
“To further support tenants, we have increased the notice periods to six months, an unprecedented measure to help people stay in their homes during the winter months.
‘It is right that we strike a balance between protecting vulnerable tenants and ensuring that landlords whose tenants have behaved in an illegal or antisocial manner have access to justice.
“Our legislation means that these cases will be subject to shorter notice periods and then prioritized through the new judicial processes of the judiciary.”
The move was welcomed by charities and council leaders, but activists said the change didn’t help people notify before August.
Polly Neate, Shelter’s CEO, said: ‘It’s a step in the right direction to make sure tenants threatened with eviction have more time to find a new home. And avoiding families the misery of being evicted at Christmas is the right thing to do.
But these measures will not protect tenants notified before August, who could still face automatic eviction after the 10-day eviction ban ends.
Emma Burton and her family live with her parents in France after the tenant who was renting their home in Merseyside stopped paying rent and refused to leave. But due to changes in the eviction rules, they have struggled to get their home back.
“And for tenants notified after August, the measures simply delay the threat of homelessness.”
Last month, a YouGov poll conducted for Shelter identified that nearly 250,000 private tenants had fallen behind in paying their rent since the pandemic began in the UK and 174,000 had been threatened with eviction.
Labor said the ban on evictions cannot end until the government has a “credible plan” to keep its promise that no tenant should lose their home to the coronavirus.
Shadow Housing Secretary Thangam Debbonaire said: ‘The announcement shows that the Government is preparing for a drastic increase in evictions this winter, just as coronavirus cases are on the rise.
“They threaten public health and put lives at risk.
“They have not prepared for this crisis and must urgently change course.”
Exceptions will only apply ‘in the most egregious cases’, even where tenants have shown antisocial behavior or committed fraud
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said it will keep the measures under “constant review” and that decisions will be guided by the latest public health councils.
He said that as of September 21 the courts will begin hearing possession hearings again, prioritizing cases that involve antisocial behavior and other crimes, as well as rent arrears.
No case prior to Aug.3 will immediately go to a hearing, instead the owner will need to reactivate it and be subject to a review hearing, the MHCLG added.
The department said that landlords will also need to provide courts and judges with information on how tenants have been affected by the pandemic, and procedures can be postponed until the information is provided.
The MHCLG added: ‘No landlord, including those who only rent a property, have had access to the courts since March, even to regain possession in cases where the tenant has violated the law.
It is therefore right that property owners can access justice, along with measures to protect the vulnerable. The Government would like to thank the owners for their patience during this difficult time ”.
There will also be a ‘winter truce’ on the enforcement of evictions, with no evictions being allowed in England and Wales before and during Christmas, except in the ‘most serious circumstances’ such as antisocial behavior or domestic abuse. the department said.
Guidance will be issued to sheriffs that they should not enforce possession orders in Christmas weeks, he added.
However, landlord groups have previously said their members have been “powerless” to cope with non-payment of rent.
The British Homeowners Association called a similar move in Wales in July “devastating”, some of which were “already experiencing financial difficulties”.
The head of BLA, Mr. Sajjad Ahmad, called on the government to offer financial assistance to the owners, saying at the time that “the owners cannot bear this financial burden themselves, they need help.”
Some have called for more help in England to reduce financial pressures on homeowners, in addition to mortgage holidays.
Chris Norris, policy director for the National Association of Homeowners, welcomed the news that the courts would begin hearing possession cases again beginning Sept. 21.
“It is vital that this happens so that landlords can begin to take action against antisocial tenants, those who commit acts of domestic violence and those who have arrears in paying rent that have nothing to do with Covid-19,” said.
