Two-thirds of workers in England can’t afford private rent. If that’s not a crisis, what is? | Phineas Harper

The government has promised to fix the housing affordability crisis. Relying on the private sector will only make things worse

This Christmas, bailiffs have been busy. Evictions in England and Wales rose by 11.2% compared with the same period last year, leaving thousands of families without a home in the coldest months. Now, new research has revealed that private landlords in England are charging such high rents that nearly two-thirds of workers are struggling to pay it.

The study, commissioned by the housing charity Shelter, found that nearly 4.5 million people are falling behind on their rent or having trouble covering its rising cost. It is gloomy news for the government, which has put fixing Britain's chronic housing-affordability crisis at the heart of its agenda, but under whose watch life for private renters continues to deteriorate.

Phineas Harper is a writer and curator