It’s always a pleasure when constituents come down to Parliament to discuss an issue that they feel passionate about. This week it was my pleasure to meet Waaqas who lives in Ridge Hill who came to talk to me about his experiences as a tenant in the private rented sector, which were so bad he moved from Leeds to Stalybridge to avoid the worst of rogue landlords and a sector that isn’t working in tenants’ interests.

The latest Census showed that 17.5percent of Tameside households are private renters, up from 13.2 a decade ago. But renters really have had a rough time of it in recent years, with a system that is so often not on their side. Liz Truss’s economic car crash meant that landlord’s mortgages have rocketed, often with unaffordable hikes being past onto the tenants, and the scourge of no fault evictions continues to cause anxiety for many. Tenants in private rentals can’t afford more dither and delay from this chaotic and incompetent government – they need security now.

It is now well over three years since the Conservatives promised to end no-fault evictions. Since then, almost 53,000 households have been threatened with homelessness by section 21 notices. According to figures from the Ministry of Justice, Section 21 eviction notices were up by a whopping 143% for October to December 2022 as compared to same point in 2021.

The first priority must be to give tenants the security of a roof over their heads while we get through this crisis. The Government have accepted the need to end no fault evictions. My message is – get this done now. If we don’t, the consequence could be significant. Housing charity Crisis are warning that over 300,000 households could end up homeless during 2023 unless the Government takes drastic action.

Labour will tilt the balance of power back towards renters by introducing a powerful new Private Renters Charter to make renting fairer, more secure, and more affordable, through higher-quality and properly regulated Private Rented Sector. This will give new rights and protections to tenants, including the right to have pets, the right to make reasonable alterations, the right to request speedy repairs and longer notice periods for landlords. We will introduce a national register of landlords and licensing for letting agents, and our housing white paper, to be produced within our first 100 days, will set out how longer-term tenancies will become the norm and how best to stabilize rent increases within tenancies.

Tameside renters deserve their house to feel like a secure home, just like everyone else does.