THOUSANDS of people are calling on the Scottish Government to give 'rent holidays' to tenants affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Living Rent, Scotland's tenants union, has launched a petition asking for a pause on evictions and rent collections in the social and private rented sector for those who can't work as they're self-isolating.

Communities minister Aileen Campbell said a temporary law change would be introduced to extend the period a tenant can be in rent arrears without being evicted from three months to six months.

She made the announcement as she revealed a £350m "welfare and wellbeing" support package.

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But Labour's Pauline McNeill said the action "should go much further" and asked for an approach which "broadly mirrors" the mortgage agreement, where homeowners can get a three-month holiday.

Living Rent say tenants are not only facing a major health crisis but the possibility of homelessness too. "It's unconscionable anyone should even have to worry about being evicted from their home at this time," Emma Saunders, from the union, said.

"The Scottish Government urgently needs to take drastic action to protect tenants at this time."

Glasgow Green Party councillor Jon Molyneux backed the campaign, saying: "This crisis is exposing the vulnerability of those living on low wages, in precarious employment or with insecure accommodation like nothing else before."

"It’s vital that the emergency legislation now being taken through the Scottish and UK parliaments gives people the legal protections they need if they lose income as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

"We should be moving to guarantee their basic income, support rent holidays, and ensure that no one will be evicted from their home at this time."

Ms Campbell also asked landlords to be "flexible and adaptable". "We cannot have people being made, or at risk of being made, homeless at this difficult time," she said.

"We need to get the balance right between protecting tenants and ensuring landlords can continue to provide housing."

She will write to the UK Government asking for mortgage holidays to be extended to six months.

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Housing minister Kevin Stewart added: "No landlord should evict a tenant because they have suffered financial hardship due to coronavirus and we are actively considering how best this can be addressed.

"People affected by coronavirus who are concerned about paying their rent can claim Universal Credit from the Department for Work and Pensions which includes support for housing costs, if eligible."

The Scottish Association of Landlords has issued advice to its members which includes talking to and being flexible with tenants. It states they should ask their mortage provider for relief if a tenant is in difficulty and pass on any savings through a rent reduction.

John Blackwood, the association's chief executive, said: "The vast majority of landlords are already very flexible in working with tenants experiencing difficulty with rents and the law rightly says that no attempt can be made to evict anyone unless they are in rent arrears by three consecutive months.

"Although the expectation is that most of those who contract Covid-19 will recover in 7-10 days, there will undoubtedly be much wider economic impacts for many people and landlords must be understanding and alive to these."