Rents and security of tenure: the circular progress of Scotland's private rented sector?

In response to exceptional circumstances, in 1915 temporary controls on eviction and rent increases were introduced for residential tenancies. These measures, to protect tenants from the ravages of market forces stemming from the outbreak of a major European War, whilst largely non-party political were not without their problems. They were retained in various forms over the next seven decades until a return to a market-based private rental system was essayed in 1988. In the second decade of the 21st century another exceptional set of unforeseen events unfurled, with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and an economic crisis set, in a United Kingdom context, against the backdrop of the country’s departure from the European Union. The response of the Scottish Government has been to introduce measures in relation to rent increases during a tenancy and eviction in the private rented sector. Again, there may be some problems. It seems at first glance that the wheel has turned full circle. This article explores what has happened in the years since the introduction of the original controls, whether it is the case that Scotland’s progress has in fact been circular, and offers some insights for the future.