Homelessness minister Rushanara Ali resigns after 'ejecting tenants and hiking rent'
Four tenants who rented a house in east London from Rushanara Ali were sent an email last November saying their lease would not be renewed, which also gave them four months' notice to leave, the i Paper reported. Ms Ali's property was then re-listed with a £700 rent increase within weeks. Ali has now resigned saying in a letter to the Prime Minister that remaining in the role would be 'a distraction from the ambitious work of this Government'.
She told the Prime Minister in a letter: 'It has been the honour of my life to have played my part in first securing and then serving as part of this Labour Government. You have my continued commitment, loyalty and support.
'Further to recent reporting, I wanted to make it clear that at all times I have followed all relevant legal requirements. I believe I took my responsibilities and duties seriously, and the facts demonstrate this.
'However, it is clear that continuing in my role will be a distraction from the ambitious work of the Government. I have therefore decided to resign from my ministerial position.'
Sir Keir Starmer told Ms Ali in a letter: 'Thank you for all you have done to deliver this Government's ambitious agenda.
'Your diligent work at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, including your efforts to put in measures to repeal the Vagrancy Act, will have a significant impact.
'You have also begun the process of delivering landmark reforms including tackling harassment and intimidation in public life and encouraging more people to engage and participate in our democracy. This will leave a lasting legacy.
'I know you will continue to support the Government from the backbenches and represent the best interests of your constituents in Bethnal Green and Stepney.'
Kevin Hollinrake, the Conservative party chairman, called for the minister to stand down, accusing her of 'staggering hypocrisy' over her handling of the rental property. A spokesperson for the minister previously said: 'Rushanara takes her responsibilities seriously and complied with all relevant legal requirements.'
The house, rented on a fixed-term contract, was put up for sale while the tenants were living there, and it was reportedly only re-listed as a rental because it had not sold.
Speaking to the i Paper, Ms Ali's former tenant Laura Jackson said she was one of four tenants who received an email giving four months notice to leave the property, for which they collectively paid £3,300 in rent.
Ms Jackson, a self-employed restaurant owner, said she saw the house re-listed weeks after she and her fellow tenants had left, but with a rent of around £4,000. The 33-year-old told the i Paper: 'It's an absolute joke. Trying to get that much money from renters is extortion.'
She also said two letting companies managing the property for Ms Ali had attempted to charge £395 in cleaning fees and £2,000 to repaint the house when they left. The tenants successfully challenged this, as landlords are prohibited from charging tenants for professional cleaning, and from repainting costs unless serious damage has occurred.
The minister's actions faced scrutiny from rental rights campaigners, as the Government seeks to clamp down on what it sees as unfair rental practices. The Renters' Rights Bill includes measures to ban landlords who end a tenancy to sell a property from re-listing it for six months.
The Bill, which is nearing its end stages of scrutiny in Parliament, will also abolish fixed-term tenancies and ensure landlords give four months' notice if they want to sell their property.
Ben Twomey, chief executive of Generation Rent, had described the allegations as 'shocking and a wake-up call to Government on the need to push ahead as quickly as possible to improve protections for renters'.
He added: 'It is bad enough when any landlord turfs out their tenant to hike up the rent, or tries their luck with unfair claims on the deposit, but the minister responsible for homelessness knows only too well about the harm caused by this behaviour. These allegations highlight common practices that the Government can eradicate.
'The Renters' Rights Bill would ban landlords who evict tenants to sell the property from re-letting it within 12 months, to deter this kind of abuse – but unfortunately members of the House of Lords have voted to reduce this to six months.
'The Government can also use its review of the deposit protection system to penalise landlords who make exaggerated claims at the end of the tenancy.'
Tom Darling, director at the Renters' Reform Coalition, also had said: 'It's mind-boggling that we have a homelessness minister who has just evicted four people in order to rake in more rent – something that will soon be illegal under the Renters' Rights Bill her own department is bringing through Parliament.
'The Government are currently considering an amendment to the legislation from the House of Lords which reduces the ban on re-letting after eviction from 12 months to six months.
'The Government must remove this amendment, and at the very least minister Ali must recuse herself from any discussions on this within Government.'
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