Green Party deputy leader linked to property lets despite opposition to landlords

Mothin Ali, the Green Party’s deputy leader in Leeds, is the sole director and controlling shareholder of MA Holdings, a company that bought two rental properties in the city—one in June 2022 and another in March 2025. The purchases were made before the party formally adopted a policy to phase out private landlordism by October 2025. According to Companies House filings, Ali owns more than 75 percent of MA Holdings, which is described as dealing in the buying, selling, letting and management of its own real estate. The Times first reported the link, and the BBC confirmed that the second property’s former owner believed the house had been bought with the intention of being let out. The Green Party told the BBC that Ali’s involvement was driven solely by caring responsibilities for vulnerable close family members, and that personal details provided to the broadcaster would remain confidential at the party’s request.

The controversy strikes at the heart of the Greens’ newly‑ratified “Abolish landlords” motion, passed at the party’s October conference and now official policy for the England and Wales branch. The motion characterises the private rental sector as a vehicle for wealth extraction and calls for a combination of stricter regulation, higher taxes, rent controls, the end of buy‑to‑let mortgages and expanded council housing to diminish private landlordism. While the policy does not literally ban landlords, it aims to make private renting unprofitable and to shift the market toward socially rented homes. Party officials emphasised that Ali supports the policy’s objectives, even though his own holdings appear to run counter to the stated goal of eliminating landlord profit.

Green Party spokespersons defended Ali, citing the confidential information that shows his actions were motivated by family care rather than personal gain. They declined to disclose those details, noting the request to protect Ali’s relatives. When asked if Ali had taken steps to align his property interests with the new policy, the party said he fully backs the measures but did not indicate any intention to divest or alter the holdings. Green MP Carla Denyer clarified that the motion’s “eye‑catching” title does not mean an outright ban on landlords, but rather a suite of reforms intended to alleviate the housing crisis, empower tenants and increase social housing stock. The episode highlights the tension between the party’s ideological stance on private rentals and the personal financial arrangements of one of its senior figures, raising questions about consistency and the practical implementation of the Greens’ housing agenda.

⚡ Effects Interpreter