MSP Dr Richard Simpson has called for rising private sector rents to be tackled by new laws after the latest figures show the average rent in Scotland is at a new high.

Data, obtained by the Scottish Labour MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, from letting agents Your Move, shows that the average Scottish rent stands at £549 a month. The MSP also highlighted that more tenants are struggling to pay on time while there has been a spike in the returns for landlords.

Dr Simpson said: “These new figures show landlords making more whilst more tenants struggle, the SNP Government in Edinburgh cannot continue to turn a blind eye to rent reform. The 2000 private renters in Clackmannanshire deserve better than that.

“We need to reform the private rental sector to make it work for everyone, rather than simply act as a cash cow for landlords it needs to serve families unable to get a foot on the property ladder or access to social housing.

“I back Scottish Labour plans to ban rip off rent rises. This is about making the system fit for purpose. When the SNP opposed our plans last year they sided with Tories and bad landlords, rather than with tenants in Clackmannanshire and across Scotland.” Last year, the MSP supported Scottish Labour proposals to the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 that would have seen a cap on rent rises and the limitation of rent reviews to one per annum. But the plans were blocked by the SNP.

Since the start of the millennium, the amount of households in poverty shifted from predominantly being in the social rented sector to now up to a quarter in the private rented sector.

The Scottish Government’s Expert Working Group on Welfare published its second report, ‘Re-thinking Welfare: Fair Personal and Simple’, in June last year.

One of the report’s recommendations was to “strike the right balance between supporting a well-functioning private rental market and preventing excessive rents that can arise through pressures in the private rental sector in areas of high demand and low supply”.

The recommendation went on to say that “rents should increase in line with inflation, bit not above it, at least for the duration of a tenancy”.

Responding to MSP Dr Richard Simpson, SNP’s Keith Brown blasted Labour and said the government is getting on with the job and is already taking action to reform the private rented sector.

The MSP for Clackmannanshire and Dunblane said: “While Richard Simpson and Labour are spending their time firing off glib press releases, the SNP Scottish Government is actually getting on with the job when it comes to housing.

“We built the first new council housing in Clackmannanshire for over 20 years; we are on track to deliver 30,000 new affordable homes by March 2016; and we have ended the right to buy which will protect social housing stock for future generations.

“The Scottish Government is already taking action to reform Scotland’s private rented sector as part of our commitment to making sure everyone in Scotland has access to good quality, affordable housing.

“Over the last two years we have legislated to regulate letting agents, provided local authorities with further powers to tackle poor landlord practice and have banned the charging of premium fees.

“This autumn we will introduce a Bill to Parliament that will create a new private rented sector tenancy, improve security for tenants allowing them to better assert their rights and include proposals to protect tenants against excessive rent rises.

“This is real action, which will benefit tenants across Clackmannanshire and Scotland, and I hope that Richard Simpson will give it his full support.”