Labour is plotting the greatest assault on property rights in living memory

There are now over 170 pieces of legislation to which landlords must comply, including strict local authority licensing requirements, a responsibility to check if tenants have the right to rent a property and rules on protecting tenants deposits in a government-approved scheme. 

And last year, the introduction of Section 24 restricted the ability of unincorporated landlords to deduct mortgage interest and other finance costs (such as mortgage arrangement fees) against their rental income for tax purposes.

But what little control these property owners have retained will be eroded further by an incoming Labour government. The Opposition has made no secret of its intention to ban so-called “no fault evictions”, though the idea that landlords should have the right to reclaim their property after an agreed period of time is hardly controversial. And who will resist, considering so many politicians seem to believe the line peddled by campaigners that landlords are evicting good tenants on a whim before their contract has expired? 

But the assault on property rights under Labour won’t stop there. In Wales, which offers a glimpse into our future, a Labour administration has handed councils powers to charge up to 300pc council tax or force second homeowners to rent their properties for half the year. 

The Labour Mayor of London has consistently demanded rent controls across the capital. And Keir Starmer’s party is committed to scrapping the leasehold system which allows more people to get onto the property ladder, while the Right to Buy discount will be slashed. 

A wealth tax, for all the protestations, should not be ruled out: not even Labour politicians can believe their many spending pledges will be met just by closing non-dom loopholes and slapping VAT on private school fees.