The government has extended the eviction ban, which was due to end on Monday 11 January, until “at least 21 February”.

It has also announced a further £10m in funding for English councils to help house rough sleepers and have them register with a GP.

The government says that the ban on bailiff evictions applies to “all but the most egregious cases” and that its measures will be kept under review.

It adds that a new mediation pilot for landlords and renters who face court procedures will be put into place in February to help both parties reach a mutual agreement and to allow courts to prioritise cases.

Communities secretary Robert Jenrick says: “Our ongoing Everyone In initiative is widely regarded as one of the most successful of its kind in the world, ensuring 33,000 people are safe in accommodation. We are now going further and focusing on GP registration of rough sleepers.

“We are also extending the ban on bailiff evictions – helping to protect the most vulnerable renters.”

StepChange director of external affairs Richard Lane adds: “While we fully welcome the extension of the temporary evictions ban, we also urge government to implement the same policy and ban wider bailiff visits, and to start building the longer-term recovery framework that will be needed to tackle household debt once the pandemic eventually ends.”

And National Residential Landlords Association chief executive Ben Beadle warns: “The repossessions ban is a sticking plaster that will ultimately lead to more people losing their homes. It means tenants’ debts will continue to mount to the point where they have no hope of paying them off leading eventually to them having to leave their home.

“Instead, the government should recognise the crisis facing many tenants and take immediate action to enable them to pay their debts as is happening in Scotland and Wales. The objective should be to sustain tenancies in the long term and not just the short term.”