If it felt like a long time coming, that’s because it has been. Amid the gaudy pomp and ceremony, the Queen’s speech contained a series of pledges that could substantially improve life for millions of renters across England. Sitting against an almost comically gilded backdrop, Prince Charles spoke of a government ready to “improve the regulation of social housing, strengthen the rights of tenants and ensure better quality safer homes”.
The proposed renters’ reform bill contains one particularly eye-catching commitment. For years, housing activists and charities have fought for the abolition of section 21 of the Housing Act (1988), an insidious piece of Thatcherite legislation that became better known as “no-fault evictions”. The premise is simple enough. Under the terms of section 21, private landlords have been able to evict tenants without a reason, and giving just two months notice.
