Prime Minister and tenant groups celebrate Renters’ Rights Act

The Prime Minister claimed the new renters’ rights laws would “rip up the status quo” as tenant groups and politicians gathered to celebrate the Renters’ Rights Act coming into force.

At an event at Number 10 Downing Street this week, groups including Generation Rent and the Renters’ Reform Coalition gathered to welcome new protections for renters.

The act came into effect on 1 May 2026 and included the abolition of Section 21 evictions and the end of fixed-term tenancies.

Not a dry piece of legislation

Generation Rent posted on its website that its chief executive, Ben Twomey, “spoke about how the Renters’ Rights Act is finally a recognition that the way we rent has changed dramatically over the past forty years and that renters need to be able to put down roots in their communities, without the fear of being evicted for no reason”.

The group added that the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, “talked in glowing terms about how renters would benefit from their new protections”.

As reported in The Sun, Mr Starmer said the new rights would “rip up the failed status quo”.

He said: “We had to fight for this. We did this very much together.

“This is not a dry piece of legislation that just sits on the statute books, it makes a real impact for renters.”

When contacted by Property118, the government told us landlord groups such as the National Residential Landlords Association and The Independent Landlord also attended the event.

Renters have suffered

Later on, in a post on Facebook, Mr Stamer claimed the Act would “help working people”.

The post said: “This month, new laws for renters came into effect. We have ended no-fault evictions, cracked down on unfair rent hikes, and banned bidding wars. For decades, renters have suffered in a system designed to exploit them.

“I said my government would end the status quo that has failed the British people, and I meant it.

“We are putting power back where it belongs: in the hands of working people.”

Angela Rayner was at the event

The Sun also reported former Housing Secretary Angela Rayner was at the event to mark the Act coming into force.

This came after Ms Rayner claimed she had been “exonerated by HMRC of deliberately avoiding tax” and did not need to pay a financial penalty over stamp duty.

Ms Rayner resigned as Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary after admitting she failed to pay the correct amount of stamp duty on her flat in Hove.

However, HMRC has declined to comment on Ms Rayner’s claim, with a spokesperson telling The Telegraph it could not respond due to confidentiality laws.