Former shadow chancellor of the Exchequer John McDonnell has used an article in the Guardian newspaper to call for the ban on tenant evictions to be extended for ‘at least another year’.

‘Many people are becoming desperately worried that they will now face evictions. Many cannot rely upon the goodwill of their landlords to prevent them losing their homes. That’s why it is premature to end the ban on evictions, especially with so many jobs being lost and incomes drying up’.

McDonnell also proposed a shake-up of housing law to curb the power of landlords and tackle Britain’s housing crisis. ‘Housing should be a right for all, not an investment opportunity for a few’, he said.

He suggested an increase in capital gains tax for second homes, a legal limit on the number of properties that individual landlords are allowed to own, a ban on the purchasing of homes through companies, and cancelation of rent arrears caused by Covid-19.