‘I’m no pervert’: ‘Rent for sex’ landlord faces public backlash after TV interview

A landlord who offers accommodation in return for sex and claims he is not acting illegally has been branded a “pimp” online. Now calls are growing for police to investigate his activity.

The man, who appeared on ITV’s ‘This Morning’ show, said he is “not a pervert” as he only seeks arrangements with adult people and does not respond to 15, 16 and 17 year old’s. The landlord, who has also been married and has a child, said he does more than just offer the women a “fully-stocked fridge.”

“I offer them a life. I have had three long-term partners who have all had their own businesses, their own family, they are still in touch with me. They still all talk to me. I’m not a pervert ... It’s an arranged relationship,” the man said.

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When presenter Holly Willoughby suggested his acts may amount to a breach of the Sexual Offences Act, which carries a maximum sentence of seven years, the landlord insisted he was “doing nothing wrong.” He added: “It’s an arrangement between two adult human beings. I’m not looking for a 16 year old, an 18 year old, I want someone of my own age. I’m not looking for somebody that’s vulnerable, and if somebody is vulnerable, I wouldn’t be interested.”

It comes as an ITV expose revealed up to 250,000 women across the UK are being offered free or discounted rent in exchange for sexual favors. A furious audience flocked to Twitter to express their “disgust” at the “vile” man. Some also called for him to be questioned by the police.

Last year then-Justice Secretary David Lidington said rent-for-sex offers may breach the Sexual Offences Act. “An offence is committed when a person offers accommodation in return for sex, as they are inciting/causing another person to have sex with them in return for ‘payment’”, he told Hove MP Peter Kyle in a letter.

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