Enhancing Housing Rights

Protecting Tenants, Tackling Homelessness

The SNP Scottish Government last year passed its landmark Housing Bill – key legislation to transform homelessness prevention and improve standards in rented housing.

Whilst Scotland under the SNP already had some of the strongest homelessness rights of any country, the Scottish Government has now gone even further to a create a gold-standard homelessness prevention system. We have led the way in protecting tenants and providing strong rights when people are homeless, and now the Housing Bill will revolutionise homelessness prevention and ensure rents are kept affordable.

The Bill will place a duty on certain public bodies to prevent people from losing their homes by asking about their housing situation and taking action. The Bill will also broaden Ministers’ powers to implement ‘Awaab’s Law’, which will ensure landlords promptly address issues that are hazardous to tenants’ health, starting with damp and mould.  

Other measures in the Bill include giving Ministers the power to implement a system of long-term rent controls, keeping rent affordable for tenants.

It was welcomed by Crisis Scotland as marking “a landmark moment in Scotland’s journey towards ending homelessness”. These new changes hold the potential to create a truly world-leading homelessness system, where everyone has a safe, secure place to live.

Passing this groundbreaking legislation, coupled with the Housing Emergency Action Plan, shows just how serious the SNP are about tackling Scotland’s housing crisis.