The Act: Overview Removal of mandatory eviction grounds Section 45: Tenancies under the Rent (Scotland) Act 1984: discretionary eviction grounds
169.This section puts on a permanent footing the temporary changes made by paragraph 5 of schedule 1 of the Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020. It amends the Rent (Scotland) Act 1984 (“the 1984 Act”). The result of this section is that all eviction grounds for tenancies under that Act will become discretionary eviction grounds on a permanent basis, in a similar fashion to the changes made by sections 43 and 44 in respect of private residential tenancies and assured tenancies.
170.The 1984 Act tenancy regime of “regulated tenancies” pre-dated the introduction of assured tenancies. Again, this was effectively a type of “wrapper” imposing certain rules which automatically applied to tenancies which met the criteria set out in the legislation. Part 1 of the 1984 Act sets out various property types or letting arrangements which are excluded from the regime, such as certain student lets, a tenant living with a resident landlord or social housing. New tenancies under the 1984 Act were phased out under sections 42 to 46 of the 1988 Act. There are therefore likely to be exceedingly few tenancies (if any) still operating under this legislative regime.
171.As with private residential tenancies and assured tenancies, prior to the temporary modifications made by the Coronavirus (Scotland) Act 2020, some eviction grounds for tenancies under the 1984 Act were mandatory and some were discretionary. The grounds for granting an eviction order (referred to in the 1984 Act as an “order for possession”) are set out primarily in schedule 2 of the 1984 Act.
172.The eviction grounds which change from mandatory to discretionary on a permanent basis under this section can be broadly summarised as follows:
	the property was previously occupied by the landlord and it is now needed for the landlord or their family member, or is to be sold by the lender under a heritable security or is required following the landlord’s death (case 11 in schedule 2 of the 1984 Act),
	the property was acquired with the intention of being used as a retirement home and the landlord has now retired and requires it, or it is to be sold by the lender under a heritable security or is required following the landlord’s death (case 12 in schedule 2),
	the property was let for 8 months or less, and was let as a holiday home within the year preceding the tenancy (case 13 schedule 2),
	the property was let for a year or less, and was let as student accommodation within the year preceding the tenancy (case 14 in schedule 2),
	the property was let under a short tenancy and the short tenancy has ended (case 15 in schedule 2),
	the property is held for use in connection with a religious purpose and is required for that purpose (case 16 in schedule 2),
	the property has been used in connection with agricultural work and various other related criteria are met (cases 17 to 19 in schedule 2),
	the property is tailored to meet special needs, the tenant does not have such needs and the property is required for a person who has such needs (case 20 in schedule 2),
	the landlord is in the armed forces and requires the property as a residence or it is to be sold by the lender under a heritable security or is required following the landlord’s death (case 21 in schedule 2).
173.These eviction grounds will be dealt with in the same way as those eviction grounds which have always been discretionary under the 1984 Act (such as the tenant having been convicted of relevant anti-social behaviour, being in rent arrears, or having breached the tenancy agreement in some other way).