Scotland: Tenants 'sidelined' as landlords lobby for Covid-19 subsidies (The Ferret, 28 July 2020)

• Tenants 'sidelined' as landlords lobby for extra Covid-19 subsidy

• By Ally Tibbitt. Published on The Ferret on 28 July 2020

• https://theferret.scot/landlord-lobbying-coronavirus-subsidy-living-rent/

• Summary:

  • In Scotland, landlord lobbyists pressured Scottish Government officials for further coronavirus subsidies. Lobby groups also wanted to open the scheme up so that private landlords with more than five rental properties could benefit.

  • “Although the scheme currently remains limited to landlords with five our fewer properties, action notes show that civil servants responded to the call by offering a dedicated email for landlords who did not qualify for the existing scheme so they could set-out their circumstances.”

  • The article quotes the figures provided by the Scottish Government that indicate that 30 subsidised loan offers have so far been made to landlords, and only nine of the approved loans cover properties that are occupied.

• Keywords: coronavirus, Covid-19, UK, Scotland housing conditions, subsidy, tenants rights, landlords, private landlords, lobbying