The mayors of London, Manchester and Liverpool have demanded a freeze in private rents and an eviction ban to tackle the rental crisis faced by millions.
Sadiq Khan, Andy Burnham and Steve Rotherham are among the figures to sign an open letter to Michael Gove calling for a Scotland-style freeze - which they claim will prevent "huge numbers" becoming homeless.
The trio are joined by leaders of the Green Party as well as union leaders including RMT chief Mick Lynch.
Their letter states: "Renters are among the worst affected by the cost of living crisis. Prior to this crisis, renters were already spending four to five times as much as owner-occupiers on housing.
"Yet landlords, with the encouragement of letting agents, are using this crisis as an opportunity to introduce rent hikes."
The group calls on the government to follow the lead of the Scottish government, which has brought in a freeze on rents until March - with a ban on evictions.
It says: "A rent freeze could be accompanied by support for mortgage holders – ensuring renters and lower income homeowners do not lose their homes through the crisis."
The document adds: "A rent freeze would immediately relieve pressure on millions of people and halt an eviction crisis that would have a devastating social impact, and cost local councils and the government millions."
They have also called for support for struggling landlords.
The London Renters Union (LRU) says that 2.5 million renters across England were last year behind or constantly struggling to pay their rent.
This has been coupled by "skyrocketing" rents, with Manchester, Bristol, Sheffield and Birmingham seeing increases of up to 20.5%.
In London rents went up by 17.8% on average last year, the LRU says.
LRU spokesperson Liam Miller said: “Millions are being squeezed by falling wages and rising rents.
"The government has the power to protect people from unaffordable rent rises, but it is choosing instead to preside over a wild west rental market that is punishing the people who kept the country going through the pandemic.
"A rent freeze now is the only way to address the scale and urgency of the crisis, and would represent a step towards a stronger housing system that meets everyone's needs.”
A Government spokesperson said: “We recognise the pressures brought on by the rising cost of living, which is why we delivered £1,200 of direct support to millions of households last year, including £400 towards energy costs, and will be providing a further £1,350 of support to the most vulnerable households over the next year.
“We continue to work with the sector and tenants, however, evidence shows rent controls in the private sector do not work – leading to declining standards and a lack of investment and may encourage illegal subletting.
"Our reforms will deliver a fairer deal for renters, including empowering them to challenge unjustified rent increases and a ban on Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions.”
