TENANTS-rights campaigners expressed outrage today at government plans to end next month the ban on evictions during the coronavirus pandemic, warning that thousands could end up sleeping on the streets.

Housing Minister Lord Greenhalgh said on Thursday that ending the suspension “is an important step towards ending the lockdown” as he confirmed the end of the moratorium on evictions by private and social landlords. 

Courts will begin to process possession cases from August 24, after they were put on hold in England and Wales during the pandemic. 

London Renters Union member Michael Deas warned that the crisis “isn’t going away, so neither should the evictions ban.”

He said: “The government said no-one should lose their home as a result of coronavirus. Now we know those were empty words. 

“Many renters haven’t been able to pay rent throughout lockdown.

“But when the courts reopen, our unfair housing laws mean that landlords will find it incredibly easy to evict those tenants. 

“So if the government sticks to this decision, we could see thousands of people made homeless in September.”

Mr Deas said the combination of Covid-19, a “broken” housing system and a government that “always backs landlords” had “saddled renters with unprecedented and unbearable” levels of debt.

He added: “Many tenants have no prospect of paying back their arrears — and that’s no surprise with unemployment rising, especially in hospitality.

“Many landlords aren’t showing compassion, and they’re not going to start doing so now. The evictions ban must be made permanent.”

Homelessness charity Shelter previously warned that lifting the suspension without protecting renters would “unleash a wave of homelessness.”

The ban on landlords evicting businesses currently ends in September.

Labour’s shadow housing secretary, Thangam Debbonaire, said: “The government seems to be more interested in protecting landlords’ incomes than preventing families from losing their homes in the middle of a deadly pandemic.

“Instead of claiming this is a part of ‘normal life,’ we need emergency legislation to protect renters from evictions.”

A government spokesperson said it was working with the judiciary to ensure that, “as far as practicable,” arrangements were put in place to give those affected by coronavirus the “appropriate protections.”