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• Mon Oct 6 2025

Green Party backs plan to see end of private letting

12 hours ago Share Save Helen Catt Political correspondent Share Save

EPA

The Green Party has committed itself to phasing out private landlords from the housing system. A motion passed at its party conference at the weekend called for the party "to seek the effective abolition of private landlordism" while backing building more council houses. The plan is now official policy for the Green Party of England and Wales, but there are currently no costings for the plans. In England, 19% of all households live in privately rented properties according to the latest government figures, making it the second largest type of housing. In Wales, the latest available figure is 17%.

Under the terms of their new policy, the Greens would put more regulation and taxes on private rentals to make it difficult for landlords to make a profit, while boosting housebuilding by councils. It would use existing Green policies such as imposing rent controls, ending buy-to-let mortgages and giving councils the 'right to buy' a rental property when it is sold at a discounted price. The Greens would set up a state-owned housing manufacturer "to mass produce high quality mass council housing for local authorities". They would also levy national insurance on rental income, which, according to a report in The Times, is a measure that has also been considered by the Chancellor Rachel Reeves.