Rent freeze and eviction ban details approved by Parliament – SAL takes legal advice

A message from SAL chief executive John Blackwood.

During the past week emergency legislation to bring in restrictions on evictions and rent increases, entitled the Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Bill, has been debated by parliament.

The SNP and Green Party have put political rhetoric ahead of achieving real improvements in Scotland’s housing sector. Rushed, ill-thought-out legislation such as eviction bans and a rent increase freeze plus mortgage interest rate rises are all making it harder than ever to be a landlord in Scotland. The government is causing, or at the very least exacerbating, a housing crisis.

While we do finally have details of how the rent increase freeze and eviction ban will work, we remain in disagreement with this policy and all options remain open including the potential of legal action.

During the debate, it was encouraging to see some MSPs take landlords’ concerns seriously and SAL was mentioned in the debate on a number of occasions.

Next steps

SAL is now considering the detail of the bill that has passed and taking legal advice on whether a legal challenge to the legislation has a reasonable prospect of success. Obtaining legal opinion on a complex matter like this usually takes several weeks. As soon as that is available we will notify members of our next steps.

Not yet a member and need individual help and advice?
The very best advice I can give to you today is to join our association to add your voice, and crucially your membership fee to our campaign. As a member you will gain access to trusted information and individual assistance with your situation.

Only by working together as an industry can we fully represent you and all Scottish landlords. SAL membership information is online here – there are many other benefits to membership, some of which should more than pay you back your membership fee.

Kind regards

John Blackwood

SAL chief executive