8:55 AM, 19th March 2026, 2 months earlier 11 
The Green Celebration claims that”lease controls can work, “despite evidence suggesting otherwise. Speaking at the New Economics Foundation, Green Celebration leader Zach Polanski claimed rent caps would assist occupants facing rising rents.
He likewise required the abolition of the right-to-buy scheme.
Lease controls can work
In the speech, Mr Polanski stated: “Spiralling rents are ripping the heart out of communities across the UK. Renters are being forced to cut down on essentials simply to pay for the cost of a roof over their heads, and it’s not simply individuals who suffer as a result, it’s the whole economy.
“So it’s time to do things differently. We understand that rent controls can work, and we can learn so much from the various designs that have been tried in other places. Lease controls are an established part of private leasing in 16 European nations and it couldn’t be clearer that the UK’s got some catching up to do.
“If we had actually frozen rents in autumn 2022, homes in Britain would be saving over ₤ 3,300 per year on average. Throughout Britain, that would put ₤ 18bn of acquiring power back in the pockets of ordinary individuals, cash that could be invested in regional companies, buying a coffee on the way to work or a few pints at the end of a tough week.
“Instead? directly into proprietors’ pockets, leaving our high streets hollowed out. Green MP Carla Denyer tried to fix this scandal, pushing for lease controls to be consisted of in the Renters Rights Costs, but this Labour federal government just would not listen. A Green government would generate rent controls. We would stop the chokehold of rip-off rents and breathe life back into our communities.”
More damage than excellent
Nevertheless, Mr Polanski failed to point out that lease controls do more harm than great and in fact do far more damage than advantage renters.
According to the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), while lease controls may initially decrease leas for existing renters, they generally lead to higher rents in uncontrolled sectors and lower housing supply and quality.
Even in Scotland, the lease cap has actually been blamed for skyrocketing rents, which have actually increased by 11.6%.
Information by Hamptons exposes Scottish property managers are increasing leas at a much faster pace than anywhere else in Excellent Britain because of lease controls reshaping the marketplace.
Lead expert at Hamptons, David Fell, stated: “The evidence from Scotland recommends that rent controls rarely work as meant.
“At finest, they delay lease boosts; at worst, they set a new standard where landlords feel forced to increase their leas every year by the maximum permitted.
“Confronted with uncertainty over future guidelines, numerous property managers pick to raise rents little and typically rather than run the risk of falling far below market levels.”
Required to end best to purchase
Mr Polanski likewise declared the Green Celebration would abolish right-to-buy.
He said: “Over 2 million homes have actually now been sold under right to buy since it was introduced. In the very first place, those homes went to people who had actually worked hard and conserved approximately own the home they lived in and enjoyed, but now they’re progressively owned by private landlords, home developers and financial investment firms who treat those homes, and their renters, as golden goose.
“One in six personal occupants is now renting a previous council home, typically at extortionate rates, and typically partially spent for by the government in the kind of housing advantage. Another example of a system which is not only completely unjust however absolutely incoherent. Our Green MP Sian Berry, she’s been combating difficult to end this mess, requiring councils to be able to redeem homes lost through right to purchase.
“We require to end right to purchase totally. Develop more council homes and control leas so everybody can manage a good roofing system over their heads.”
You can view Mr Polanski’s speech below with him talking about rent controls at 42:35