WQ84104 (e) Tabled on 15/12/2021

Will the Government confirm whether it intends to carry forward the six-month notice period for no-fault evictions past the end of December and, if so, will the Government commit to keeping this extended notice period in place until the Renting Homes (Wales) Act is implemented next year?

Answered by Minister for Climate Change | Answered on 23/12/2021

On Friday 17 December 2021, I laid the Coronavirus Act 2020 (Residential Tenancies: Extension of Period of Protection from Eviction) (No. 4) (Wales) Regulations 2021 in response to the ongoing pandemic. The number of people under immediate threat of eviction from their homes must be kept low, in order to continue to contribute to the range of measures in place that respond to the continuing effects of the pandemic. These regulations will be kept under review but will end on 24 March 2022, which is when the Coronavirus Act 2020 expires.

We are aiming to commence the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 before the 2022 summer recess, and I have committed to provide stakeholders with a minimum of six months’ notice of the implementation.  More broadly, providing renters with more security forms part of the Cooperation Agreement between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru.