Rory Stewart has been slammed for opposing rent controls in London – despite earning tens of thousands of pounds in rental income.
The former Tory MP, now standing for Mayor of London as an independent, released a video on Twitter opposing rent controls, insisting the policy “wouldn’t solve the problem” of soaring rents in the capital.
But in tax returns he published earlier this month, Mr Stewart admitted he had earned £21,659 in “rental income.”
It came after London Mayor Sadiq Khan launched his re-election campaign by promising to make the election a “referendum on rent controls”.
Labour MP James Murray today said Mr Stewart’s opposition to rent controls “shows how out of touch he is with Londoners – but may be no surprise when he earns tens of thousands of pounds a year from rental income.”
A spokeswoman for Mr Stewart said it was “wrong” to link Mr Stewart’s opposition to rent controls to his income as a landlord.
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
She said: “He is against rent controls because he doesn’t think it’s an effective way to address the problem of high rents.
“He is not currently receiving any income from rent.”
Mr Murray said: “Sadiq Khan is making this election a referendum on rent controls.
“If Londoners re-elect him on 7 May, the Government will have no choice but to respect the democratic will of the people and give City Hall the powers Sadiq needs to control rents.”
He added: “This shows once again that this election is a two-horse race between Sadiq and the official Tory candidate.
“A vote for any other candidate just makes it more likely that the Tories win.”
