Ms Colette Bennett:

It was not something we advocated for. We advocated for increased tenant protections. If landlords are to sustain their business, they need the support for what it means to run a business as a landlord, what is expected of them and what they can do in that space. There are very few accidental landlords. At the time of the introduction of the code of conduct on mortgage arrears back in 2011, I advocated that the definition of property within that code should include genuine accidental landlords - people who had bought properties but could no longer afford to live in them, could not sell them because they were in negative equity and were moving back in with parents or renting a room somewhere. They are accidental landlords. There are very few of them left in the market now because of the way house prices have gone. We need to be very clear about what we call accidental landlords. People who bought a property for a pension or bought a property as a second home, holiday home or for the future use of a child and then rented it out are not accidental landlords. They bought that property as an investment to be a landlord and the appropriate supports are supports for them to run a business in the same way as any other enterprise would be supported.