The Senedd debated calls to enshrine a right to adequate housing into Welsh law.
Siân Gwenllian warned Wales’ housing crisis is getting worse, with no signs of improvement, as she set out the case for a bill to incorporate a legal right.
“The picture is bleak,” she said. “Homelessness is at its highest level ever in Wales. The number of people living in temporary, unsuitable accommodation has increased by 18 per cent this year – six out of every 1,000 children living in temporary accommodation.”
The Plaid Cymru politician told the Senedd the level of social housing has almost halved during the past 40 years, with Welsh housing stock among the oldest in Europe.
She said 70 per cent of private tenants have experienced cold, damp or mold in their homes and rents are rising faster in Wales than Scotland or England.
Ms Gwenllian warned too many second homes and temporary holiday lets in parts of the country are adding to the problem by shrinking the housing stock available to local people.
The shadow housing secretary, said: “The situation has reached such a state of crisis that legislation is needed to drive the change that isn’t currently happening.”
Outlining her proposal, she told the Senedd that establishing a legal right to housing – rather than a policy aim – would place a requirement on ministers.
She criticised the Welsh Government’s “weak” white paper on adequate housing, including fair rents and affordability, warning the policy proposals are insufficient.
Plaid Cymru’s Mabon ap Gwynfor pointed to Finland and Austria as international examples of the positive impact of implementing a right to adequate housing.
Wales’ housing secretary Jayne Bryant said ensuring everyone has a decent, affordable and safe place to call home is a key ambition for the Welsh Government.
Ms Bryant raised the role of the renters’ rights bill introduced by her Labour colleagues in Westminster.
She said the Welsh Government will introduce separate legislation, aimed at ending homelessness, by the end of the current Senedd term in 2026.
Following the debate on January 8, Senedd members backed the motion, 18-0, but the bill is unlikely to proceed without the support of ministers who abstained in the non-binding vote.