Conservatives vs Labour: Housing Plans and Proposals

Updated: July 3, 2024

Housing is a key policy area for every political party. With the ongoing cost of living crisis, demand for energy efficiency upgrades and rising mortgage and rent rates, housing is affecting everyone in the UK. So what are the two leading parties promising for the sector?

The Conservative Party plans to revisit the Tenants Reform Bill after it failed to pass Parliament before the general election.

Instead, Labour has chosen to focus on different areas that impact on landlords, letting agents and tenants in the sector, in line with its mission to “break down the barriers to opportunity”.

According to polling data from 2nd July, Labour received 40% of support, with the Conservative Party receiving 21%. With the general election approaching (4th July), estate agents should now be aware of the housing policies of the two leading parties.

Read on for a quick overview of their proposals on a few key points:

1. Private Rental Reform
2. Introduction of rent control
3. Increasing the supply of apartments
4. Housing standards
5. Regulation of holiday homes and short-term rentals
6. Leases and property rights

1. Private rental reform

Conservative Party

The Conservative government’s direction for the private rental sector is no secret. Tenants Act (Reform)First revealed in 2019, it will be returned to parliament if the party is elected.

In its manifesto, the party calls for a tenancy reform bill to “ensure fairness in the tenancy market for both landlords and tenants”.

The plans in the bill include the abolition of Article 21 Evictions (“No Fault”) and strengthening other grounds for landlords to evict tenants who engage in anti-social behaviour.

Labour Party

Work earlier common There are “serious concerns” about the current version of the Tenants Reform Bill, with a number of provisions removed from the bill after it was met with fierce resistance from Conservative MPs.

The party’s plan is to “regulate where the Conservatives have failed” by overhauling the regulation of the private rented sector.

Section 21 no-fault evictions will be abolished immediately if Labour is elected. The party will also take “decisive action to improve building safety, including through regulation”.

🗳️ Want to know what other parties are promising to reform private renting? Visit our General Elections Hub for information on all the key political parties. 🗳️

2. Introduction of rent control

Conservative Party

Although some sections of the Conservative Party support a rent freeze, the current government Freeze calls rejected including from the Labour Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.

This Tenants (Reform) Bill White Paper announced that “the government does not support the introduction of rent control, which would aim to set the rent amount at the beginning of the tenancy agreement.”

Labour Party

There are a number of vocal supporters of rent control in the Labour Party, including Sadiq Khan and Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham. However, the party also has some opponents, such as Shabana Mahmood, a senior MP and Labour campaign manager.

They will also allow tenants to “challenge unjustified rent increases”, although the manifesto does not mention how.

3. Increasing the supply of apartments

Conservative Party

As part of its manifesto, the Conservative Party will aim to deliver 1.6 million homes if elected, promising to do so “in the right places, while protecting our countryside”.

In 2021, the Conservative Party set ambitious goal of 300,000 homes build by the mid-2020s.

According to the latest available data, the government managed to build only 234,000 homes per year.

Labour Party

In the Labour manifesto, they set a target of 1.5 million new homes as part of the Kickstart Economic Growth mission. This will be achieved in the new parliament.

The party wants local authorities and communities to play a key role in housing development in their areas.

Both Labour and Conservative parties will focus on using brownfield sites and developing previously used land wherever possible.

However, Labour plans to free up and prioritise “lower quality ‘grey belt’ land”. There will be “golden rules” to ensure any development benefits both the community and the surrounding environment.

4. Housing standards

Conservative Party

The Conservative Party manifesto contains no regulations on housing standards in the private rented sector.

However, the Decent Homes Standard will be applied alongside the Renters (Reform) Bill if it is passed back through Parliament. During the third reading of the Bill, the Government confirmed that it would “apply and enforce the Decent Homes Standard for the first time in the private rented sector to ensure everyone has a safe and decent home”.

Labour Party

Awaaba law will be introduced to the private rented sector if Labour wins the election after 4 July.

The law was originally introduced to the social sector in July 2023 following the death of one-year-old Awaab Ishak “due to a severe respiratory illness caused by long-term exposure to mould in a domestic environment.”

The law will require property owners to investigate hazards within 14 calendar days and begin repairs seven days after the investigation is complete. For emergency repairs, owners have 24 hours to fix any problems.

5. Regulation of holiday homes and short-term rentals

Conservative Party

The current government has taken steps in recent months to clamp down on short-term and holiday rentals, especially in popular tourist destinations.

If elected, the Conservatives will “ensure councils have the powers they need to manage the uncontrolled growth of holiday lets”.

No specific details have been provided on how this will be achieved, but it can be assumed that it will be through the Tenants Reform Act.

Labour Party

In July 2022, the Labour Party put forward a similar concept to the licensing system in place in Wales for short-term lettings in England.

The aim of these measures is the same as the measures proposed by the Conservative government – ​​to help tourist regions hard hit by the influx of holiday homes.

However, there is no mention of short-term rentals in their manifesto. So it is unclear whether there will be any plans to manage short-term rentals if the party is elected.

6. Leasehold and fee-free ownership

Conservative Party

Now that the Government has passed the Tenancy and Private Property Reform Bill on the final day of negotiations, the Conservative Party and Labour Party are planning to introduce further regulation of tenancy and private property in the rental sector.

The Conservatives promised in their manifesto to cap ground rents at £250 and over time reduce them to penny rates.

They also plan to “complete the leasehold reform process to improve the lives of over four million leaseholders” to ensure they do not unfairly lose their property and capital, and to make it easier to take over common property.

Labour Party

The Labour Party also wants to take further steps “to ban the building of new leasehold housing and ensure that
“Common ownership” is the default form of ownership.

They will also address unregulated and unaffordable changes in ground rents and maintenance costs. However, little is known about how they will achieve this and how fees will become more affordable.

A package of proposals from the Law Commission will be introduced if Labour is elected. The proposals will focus on “leasehold enfranchisement, management rights and common property”.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.