Mr. Wayne Stanley:

With regard to a winter eviction ban, there would be great reluctance on our side. I believe that if we started to introduce winter eviction bans, they would be built into the system. Such measures have genuine force and effect as immediate emergency actions, but if you start anticipating the introduction of a winter eviction ban, or even introduce one every year, the bans will quickly be built into the system. Since people will know they are coming, they will serve their notices to quit in advance. This could put more pressure on the system because more people would be presenting in the three months before a winter eviction ban came into effect. The system quickly adapts to these things. The eviction ban we had was so powerful and effective because it was responding to a crisis. We felt it should have been in place for longer, and we stated that several times. Unless we end up back where we were, with a genuine risk of families ending up on the street immediately because of no capacity in the system, we will be slow to call for the repeated introduction of eviction bans.