Letting agents body ARLA Propertymark has joined the criticism of London Mayor Sadiq Khan who wants to be given the power to impose rent controls.

“Rent controls are not the answer when seeking ways to stand up for renters in London” explains ARLA’s Tim Douglas.

“Increasing the supply of properties, rather than capping rents will ensure rents fall and landlords stay in the market. A greater focus on speeding up planning within councils and building on land under the Mayor’s responsibility will ultimately allow more properties to be built and help make renting in London more affordable.”

The comments from Douglas echo last week’s criticism of Khan’s proposals by the National Residential Landlords Association.

Its chief executive Ben Beadle says: “Rent controls would be a disaster for London as the last Labour government made crystal clear. They would mean tenants actually paying higher rents than leaving them to market forces.

“The story of rent controls wherever they have been introduced is that they exacerbate an already serious shortage of available homes.

“Rather than calling for things he cannot deliver, the Mayor should focus on using the powers he already has to boost the supply of available housing, including for private rent.”

As part of his manifesto for next month’s London Mayor election, Khan – the Labour candidate – wants the UK government to give him the power to control rents in the private sector.

He also wants the authority to approve requests from local authorities who wish to drive up standards in the private rental sector by bringing in a landlord licensing scheme.

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