The charity’s Head of Advocacy, Campaigns & Government Relations Madison Rogers said: “Cats Protection is delighted to see this important piece of legislation move a step forward. This bill has the potential to finally give tenants the right to request to own a pet, safe in the knowledge that their request cannot be unreasonably refused.

“This could effectively bring an end to the blanket ban on cats which we see in so many parts of the private rented sector, which last year led to an average of three cats a day being given up to Cats Protection. The charity would like to see comprehensive guidance set out to ensure fairness for both tenants and landlords.

“Our research shows there are one million households in the UK who would like to own a cat but can’t due to restrictive policies, so we will be pushing for this bill to progress swiftly so it can start to help owners, cats and welfare charities.”