Politics – Page 12 – thecumbriachronic.co.uk

CRUMBRIA: 26.3.2026

POSH Carlisle Labour MP Julie Spins has been having a moan in Parliament about a city landlord.

Her latest blast of bellyaching in the House of Commons was unquestioningly relayed by the News & Shrug, Carlisle.

Fresh from her recent cha-cha-cha with the stars of Strictly, the MP was on her hind legs again – this time speaking in clipped, school mistressy tones.

“Citadel Homes (property rental agency in Carlisle) have issued demands for rent increases of over £200 a month in tandem with no-fault eviction notices,” she told sympathetic fellow MPs who murmured their disapproval.

But why might landlords be doing this?

Er, because the law currently allows them, and the Labour Government is about to drop another load of regulations and costs onto the rental sector.

From May, no-fault evictions are being abolished. Great for good tenants battling bad landlords. Less so for good landlords trying to remove problem tenants.

With the door about to slam, some landlords are acting now ahead of the biggest shake-up in renting for 30 years.

If you threaten landlords with more costs and red tape – some will pass them on before the screw tightens.

You don’t need to be Mystic frigging Meg to see that.

Citadel Homes is one of Carlisle’s largest ‘premier’ landlords and is rated 4.6 out of 5 stars from 117 reviews on Google.

Having built 350 “high quality” homes since 1998, it doesn’t look like a purveyor of Dickensian squalor...

Yet the MP darkly used her speech in parliament to call for landlords like Citadel to be “held to account”.

Presumably for having the nerve to use their rights before Labour takes them all away.

The company told its tenants that the Government’s incoming changes brings new fees and costs which have to be found. Sadly, the option is pay more or you can leave.

Yet the MP slates the company for acting before the law changes, collects a bit of publicity in the local rag, and affects shock at the consequences of her own Government’s actions.

Labour will get its chance to pose as the “saviour” of renters in May when the new laws come in, probably around the time that thousands of renters are out on their arses.

Landlords, inconveniently for the Government, beat the rule change in March — as daft MPs should have seen coming.

Previously, 31% of landlords said they planned to cut back or get out of the sector. 44% blamed law changes.

What will less landlords do for renters…

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