The Fight for Rent Control: Law, Politics and the People

This monograph looks at the various strands of policy and activities which produced the first residential Rent Act in 1915. It looks at the ways in which tenants were removed from the land in Ireland and Scotland leading to a strong aversion to landlords as a group. This is addressed in the way it appears in art, literature, song and poetry. It traces the ways in which actions of women-led tenants’ groups before and during the First World War offered an alternative way for housing policy. Precisely how these actions linked with political and industrial forces are explored. The study concludes with how this legislation links with modern day housing policy issues.