THE Scottish government has urged support for its “gold standard” Housing Bill to restore permanent rent controls, while tenants argue it has “totally conceded to the demands of landlords.”

On Tuesday, MSPs began the marathon task of considering more than 400 amendments to the Bill, aimed at shaking-up Scotland’s private rented sector and a homelessness system in crisis with the highest levels of rough sleeping on record.

Ahead of the debate, SNP housing secretary Mairi McAllan said: “We have the opportunity to create a gold standard homelessness system in Scotland by passing the Housing Bill.

“We already have some of the strongest homeless rights in the world. However, this legislation will go even further to protect and support people threatened with homelessness.”

Concerns have however grown that the Bill, first proposed by Green ministers during the ill-fated SNP-Green coalition, has been “watered-down,” concerns driven home at a lobby of Holyrood on Monday night led by tenants’ union Living Rent.

The union argues that the decision to exempt build-to-let, mid-market rent, and purpose-built student accommodation and allow rents to rise up to one per cent above inflation was “conceded to the demands of landlords,” despite overwhelming opposition from respondents to the public consultation on the Bill.

While committing to back the Bill, the Scottish Greens have tabled a number of amendments to remove those exemptions, as well as close royal property transaction tax loopholes and bring Scotland into line with England by wiping out council tax debt after six years rather than the present 20.

Describing the Bill as a “huge step forward for renters” but calling on the government to back her party’s amendments, Green MSP Maggie Chapman said: “Far too many renters are having to fork out huge sums for extortionate rents, while living in substandard accommodation and in a state of constant anxiety. Things need to change.

“We are tabling amendments that we believe will make this Bill even stronger and allow more security and peace of mind for individual renters and families.

“We hope that the government will work with us to make it as bold and robust a Bill as it can be and that we can ensure Scotland’s renters are the best protected anywhere in the UK.”