Brent Council has promised to improve the private rented sector (PRS) in the borough by tackling rogue landlords and advancing tenants’ rights.

A motion backed at full council last night agreed to support renters’ unions and ensure that privately-rented properties are maintained to an appropriate standard.

The council also vowed to support the abolition of the section 21 ‘no fault eviction’ policy, which allows landlords to turf out renters without reason.

Cllr Michael Maurice said: “I think it’s disgraceful that rogue landlords are able to operate and exploit vulnerable people.

“This has been going on for ages and we seem to still be getting it today.

“It’s not right for people on low incomes – they deserve to live somewhere nice, they need to have their rights and they need to have security.

“Around five per cent of landlords spoil it for else, because there are lots of good landlords out there.

“These sharks give everyone a bad name and I do hope that they are caught, and the courts find them huge amounts of money to stop them operating in this way.”

Several councillors gave accounts of mistreatment towards tenants in their wards, including Cllr Fleur Donnelly-Jackson, who brought the motion.

She explained that, in a Brent property, due to a faulty boiler, she had been forced to boil pots of water and several kettles in order to wash.

Cllr Janice Long recalled how one of her residents had been kicked out of the house she was living in two days after it had been sold off to another landlord at an auction.

And Cllr Roxanne Mashari described misconduct among some landlords as “an industry in itself” that must be dealt with strategically.

Some councillors called for selectively licensing to be extended across the whole of Brent, a suggestion backed by the lead member for housing Cllr Ellie Southwood.

She explained that the motion as a whole “encapsulated lots of the issues” affecting the borough and said the PRS remains a priority for her department.

“Money on beds, asking for other things – this is not uncommon, and it is absolutely shocking,” she said.

“We want to see selective licensing borough wide, and we will continue to use our investigative powers to hand out improvement notices.

“I wholeheartedly support this motion and will write to MPs to encourage them to speak up about it in parliament.”