4. What action is the Welsh Government taking to improve the supply of private properties to rent? OQ58535

Llywydd, amongst the actions being taken by the Welsh Government is the £30 million leasing scheme Wales programme. This scheme enables local authorities to lease private rented sector properties from landlords, providing those landlords with a guaranteed income and those who might otherwise face homelessness with homes at an affordable rent. 

Thank you, First Minister. I recently met with the National Residential Landlords Association to discuss how to boost the supply of private properties available to rent in Wales. They pointed out that renters across Wales are currently struggling to access the homes that they need. An independent report for the NRLA has suggested that Wales would need just under 9,000 new private rented properties a year to meet housing targets. However, 38 per cent of private landlords have told the NRLA that they plan to cut the number of properties that they rent out. The NRLA is concerned that the potential development of rent controls in Wales in response to the cost-of-living crisis would make it more difficult for tenants to access the homes that they desperately need. So, First Minister, will you listen to the concerns raised by the NRLA and thoroughly assess the potential damaging consequence of rent control on the supply of private properties to rent here in Wales? Thank you.

Well, Llywydd, I'm familiar with the work of the National Residential Landlords Association. They're calling on the UK Government to increase local housing allowances, to end their freeze on housing benefits and to end the five-week wait for universal credit at the beginning of a claim, and also that the advance payment that tenants might get should be converted from a loan to a grant so tenants do not automatically fall into debt at the outset. So, I agree with all of those points made by the NRLA and hope that the Member will wish to convey those points to the Government that's responsible for them.

She is right, of course, that there is a real risk that landlords will exit the buy-to-rent market. Why are they doing that? Well, it's because of the rapidly rising costs of borrowing money that they face. Had you borrowed £200,000—[Interruption.]

Question 5, Jayne Bryant. Oh, sorry, First Minister.

I might just finish the answer for one moment, Llywydd, just to illustrate the reason why people are under the pressure they are in in that sector. The mortgage rate in December 2021—you could borrow money at 2.34 per cent. On the day that the latest Chancellor announced his so-called mini budget, the mortgage rate had risen to 4.74 per cent. Today, it's 6.43 per cent, as a result of the reckless announcements made by the Chancellor, with his unfunded borrowing. That adds anything around £500 a month to the cost of borrowing for a private landlord seeking to increase the number of houses available to rent. That's the reason why the market is in danger of collapsing—because people can no longer afford to borrow money at the prices that they have to under the current Government.