THE government was quick to arrange possible mortgage holidays for people in financial distress because of coronavirus, but slow to arrange anything for the much more vulnerable four million households who rent. 

When Jeremy Corbyn asked Boris Johnson if he “will protect private renters from eviction,” Johnson promised he would do something, but said it was difficult because he wanted to be sure “we do not simply pass on the problem” in protecting renters. 

He means he doesn’t want to pass on the problem to landlords. Currently the government only proposes a temporary freeze on evictions, but no “holiday” from rent. 

There are many reasons the government protects landlords over tenants. One main reason is so many MPs are landlords. 

They have the money and the expenses system encourages them to own multiple properties. 

MPs must register properties worth more than £100,000 that bring in over £10,000 a year in rent. 

A high proportion of MPs from all parties are landlords, but even just looking just at the party of government, the following Conservative MPs are landlords: 

Bob Blackman, Tory MP for Brent & Harrow and executive secretary of the 1922 Committee — so a leader of the powerful back-bench Conservative MPs’ committee has “six buy-to-let properties in Welwyn Garden City owned jointly with my wife.”

Suella Braverman, MP for Fareham and attorney general, has been letting out a “flat in London” since July last year.

Paul Bristow, the newly elected Conservative MP for Peterborough, has “two flats and a house in London” in his rental portfolio.

Rob Butler, the newly elected Conservative MP for Aylesborough, has “four houses in Oxfordshire.”

Alun Cairns, Conservative MP for Vale of Glamorgan, and until last year secretary of state for Wales, has “residential property in Cardiff” he rents out.

Alex Chalk, Conservative MP for Cheltenham and Justice Minister, gets rent from a “flat in Shepherds Bush,” a “third share of a cottage in Gloucestershire” and a “third share of a flat in France.”

Jo Churchill, Conservative MP for Bury St Edmunds and a health minister, is a landlord with a “house in Grantham,” “three flats in Grantham” and a “house in Newark,” all owned jointly with her husband.

James Cleverley, Conservative MP for Braintree and a Foreign Office minister, has a “house in Lewisham, owned jointly with my wife,” which he rents out.

Cotswold Conservative MP Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown has “various let properties in London.”

Damian Collins, Conservative MP for Folkestone, rents out a “flat in London.”

Alberto Costa, Conservative MP for South Leicestershire, has “flats in Glasgow and London, the latter owned jointly with my wife,” which he rents out.

Geoffrey Cox, Conservative MP for Torridge and West Devon, and until last year attorney general, has since 2017 had “joint ownership of a residential property in London” which he rents out, although he forgot to mention it in the MPs’ register of interests for two years.

And that’s just Tory MPs with A-C surnames.  I don’t have room for the rest of the alphabet here — which just shows how many MPs are from the landlord class.