Plaid Cymru promises stronger protections for Welsh renters in manifesto

Plaid Cymru has pledged to introduce measures to “better protect renters” by abolishing no-fault evictions and boosting energy-efficiency standards.

The party has launched its manifesto ahead of the Welsh elections next month.

The news comes after nearly half of landlords in Wales (47%) believe the Renting Homes (Wales) Act has been detrimental to the private rented sector.

New measures to better protect renters

The party manifesto says: “The number of renters in Wales has grown rapidly in recent years, with one in six households now privately renting. Renters in Wales are more vulnerable than their counterparts elsewhere in the UK and lack comparable protections.

“We will introduce new measures to better protect renters, including ending no-fault evictions and giving renters greater security of tenure, restricting rental bidding by requiring properties to be let at the advertised price, and limiting rent payable in advance.”

Other proposals include granting renters a legal right to request a pet, with landlords unable to refuse unreasonably, and improving housing standards by introducing strict timeframes for addressing issues such as damp and mould.

Plaid Cymru also wants funds collected through fines to be retained within Wales rather than returned to the UK Treasury, alongside plans to strengthen enforcement and expand the regulatory role of Rent Smart Wales.

Expand access to retrofitting schemes

The party also says it will “make the renewal of Welsh housing stock a national mission”.

Under its proposals, Plaid Cymru would expand access to retrofitting schemes by adopting a tenure-neutral, area-based approach.

The manifesto says: “This means working towards models that upgrade homes across a defined area, owner-occupied, rented and social, so households benefit collectively rather than relying solely on individual applications.”

The party also proposes establishing a new quality control process to monitor the standard of work carried out by installers delivering government-funded home energy efficiency schemes.

This would include a requirement for an independent assessment to be completed and approved before payment is made.