Number 10 has thrown a reception for the staff and leaders of activist group Generation Rent, as well as other campaigners behind the Renters Rights Act.

And the event was hosted by Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer.

A statement from Generation Rent says: “Ben Twomey,chief executive, spoke about how the Renters Rights Act is finally a recognition that the way we rent has changed dramatically over the past forty years and that renters need to be able to put down roots in their communities, without the fear of being evicted for no reason. 

“He then handed over to the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer who talked in glowing terms about how renters will benefit from their new protections.”

In fact Starmer told the activists that the Act was an example of his government “ripping up the status quo”.

He said: “We had to fight for this. We did this very much together. This is not a dry piece of legislation that just sits on the statute books… it makes a real impact for renters up and down the country.”

The Prime Minister added that the reforms were about removing insecurity for tenants.

He also talked up protections for tenants with pets, joking that his family had to buy a kitten, Prince, to convince his daughter to move into Downing Street.

Former Housing Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner was also at the party.