THREE QUARTERS of Scots support the introduction of rent controls – including 85 per cent of SNP supporters.

Polling published last night also showed that 45 per cent of Scottish adults would be more likely to support a candidate for election who backed limits on rental prices.

The survey by Survation, commissioned by tenants’ union Living Rent, found that only 11 per cent would be less likely to support a candidate in favour of rent controls.

Living Rent spokesman Gordon Maloney said: “These figures should be a wake-up call to the Scottish government. Rent controls are enormously popular, and it is no surprise – far too many tenants across the country are being forced into poverty by sky-high rents.

“Now we need urgent action. If politicians turn a blind eye to the housing crisis, voters will not forgive them.”

In a report published jointly with the think tank Common Weal last month, Living Rent argued that new “rent pressure zone” powers introduced by the Scottish government have failed to protect tenants, and that the government must now move to “proper, nationwide rent controls.”

Since launching the report, almost 17,000 people have signed a petition backing the demand on the 38 Degrees website.

Safiah Fardin, of 38 Degrees, said: “With rents rising at an extortionate rate and families being forced to choose between paying the rent or paying for food, it’s no surprise that thousands of people from all across Scotland are demanding that the government implements proper rent controls.

“Now that so many people are speaking out, the Scottish government needs to listen and fix our broken housing system.”

Meanwhile Scottish Labour pointed to a 150 per cent increase in the number of children living in severe poverty in the private rented sector. Scottish government data shows that 50,000 children fell into this category over the period 2015-16 to 2017-18, up from 20,000 a decade before.

Labour is proposing a “Mary Barbour law,” named after the leader of Glasgow’s 1915 rent strike, to bring in new private rent restrictions.

“We need an urgent change of pace – building more homes for social rent and fixing the problems in the private rented sector,” Scottish Labour housing spokeswoman Pauline McNeill said.