Tenants should be given greater protection by the government from being ripped off by private landlords, a Labour MP has said.

Edmonton MP Andy Love is set to demand tougher laws to tackle the rising problem of landlords not returning rent deposits.

A spokeswoman for the ODPM told ePolitix.com: "The government recognises a significant minority of tenants are affected by the unprofessional conduct of some landlords in the treatment of tenancy deposits. In March 2000 we launched a pilot tenancy deposit scheme to look into this problem, but take-up was poor and further consultation indicated there was no robust support for a compulsory scheme.

"Importantly the Law Commission is currently undertaking a review of housing tenure which could help deal with this problem through stronger contractual agreements, and we await their report and legislative proposals with great interest."

Forum Response: Shelter

Adam Sampson, director of Shelter, said: "Every year tens of thousands of people lose out to this scam. Many are often forced into crippling debt and a few even face the extreme outcome of homelessness.

"There is no excuse for the government not to listen to today's debate and act to stop people being cheated out of their money. The government's costings don't stand up to scrutiny.

"Experience from abroad shows that a tenancy deposit scheme can more than pay for itself."

Forum Response: British Property Federation

Ian Fletcher, director commercial and residential at the British Property Federation, told ePolitix.com: "The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has carried out an extensive consultation on this issue, which strictly followed the government's consultation guidelines.

"It even commissioned independent research by a University, which concluded that 'there is no clear evidence to suggest that the actual incidence of tenants losing their deposits is so high as to require legislative intervention.'

"The figures, produced by government, show that £20 million of tenancy deposits are believed to be wrongly withheld each year, out of total deposits of £800 million - just 2.5 per cent.

"Yet, on the basis of this 2.5 per cent, what is being advocated is that all landlords should have regulations imposed on them, including the vast majority of innocent landlords who are treating deposits fairly.

"We would support measures targeted at the 2.5 per cent, but can't accept the unfairness of the broadbrush approach being advocated."