The government of United Kingdom was threatened with legal action if it will continue to their plan of introducing the "right to rent" policy in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The "right to rent" immigration checks is currently in receiving criticism because of the absence of full evaluation of the policy's impact on the immigrants.
In an article published in The Guardian, the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) has already written to Amber Rudd, the home secretary of UK government. The council demands that she must order a full evaluation of the "right to rent" policy or the compulsory immigration status checks by landlords on their potential tenant that were extended across England last 2016.
Saira Grant, the chief executive of the JCWI, criticized the "right to rent" policy by May by saying that the government must not be discriminatory to any people in their country. "In the face of clear evidence of discrimination under the right to rent, the government must show it is not acting illegally before it presses ahead with a rollout to the rest of the UK," Grant said.
The "right to rent" policy has been placed under criticisms by private landlords and immigration welfare groups because it has the tendency to discriminate against foreign nationals. Not only them, the policy is also seen to be discriminatory against British citizens without passports and British minorities and ethnic tenants. The powers in extending the scheme to Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland are inclusive in the 2016 update of the Immigration Act. However, it is yet to be implemented.
The "right to rent" policy was first introduced on a trial basis in West Midlands back in December 2014. It was introduced by UK Prime Minister Theresa May when she was still the home secretary. Independent reported that it is part of her drive in creating a hostile environment for illegal immigrants in Britain.
May also told MPS that she wanted to deny access for illegal immigrants to privately rented accommodations. "That is why we intend to roll the requirement out across the UK," she said, thus creating the "right to rent" policy. In the 2016 Immigration Act, it is easier for private landlords to evict people who are deemed illegal to have their foot in the UK and created a new criminal offense targeting rogue landlords who have been repeatedly failing to carry out checks or take steps in removing illegal people. "Let me be clear that this is not about asking landlords to become immigration experts," May said.
