The Case for Rent Control

Since the deregulation of the rental market in 1988, the gap between rents and incomes has widened. Those struggling to pay rent are a growing group and are increasingly vulnerable to price shocks due to global instability. As Andy Burnham begins his premiership, this article lays out the economic and political case for rent control policy in England. It draws on evidence that shows that the British public has an appetite for bold action, and in this environment that rent control has the potential to provide tangible relief as well as act to correct a long‐standing pattern of wealth extraction.