MPs have called on the government to confiscate properties from the country’s worst landlords after a series of revelations about tenants being exploited by rogue sections of the private rented housing sector.

The calls followed a hard-hitting select committee report in April, as well as a joint Guardian and ITV News investigation which last month revealed that convicted landlords ruled unfit to rent out their properties were continuing to operate by exploiting a gap in the law.

During a debate on the committee’s recommendations on Thursday, MPs from across the Commons urged the housing minister Heather Wheeler to introduce new powers to seize properties of the worst landlords.

Clive Betts, the Labour MP who chairs the committee, asked Wheeler: “Just reflect – even if you can’t commit to a change of policy today – to have a think about [confiscation]. These people are bad people renting bad houses to vulnerable tenants.

“They’re making lots of money out of it, they’re making proceeds out of their crime. Let’s take off them the asset that enables them to do that.”

Wheeler failed to respond to the request during the Westminster Hall debate and Betts later told the Guardian: “I don’t know why the government is resisting it. Confiscation and publicising those criminal landlords – that will be the focus now of trying to get serious change.”

The investigation by the Guardian and ITV also revealed that central government’s rogue landlord database was completely empty six months after its launch – and even when it finally contained entries the public would be barred from accessing it. The finding led to an U-turn by Theresa May, who pledged to open up the database to tenants.

Play Video 1:16 Rogue landlord hides in toilet then gets into wrong car while escaping reporters – video

There is cross-party support for both publicising the conduct of the sector’s worst offenders as well as confiscating criminal landlords’ properties, which was recommended in the April report.

During Thursday’s debate, Bob Blackman, a Conservative member of the committee member, said: “The sad reality is that if landlords fail the fit and proper person test to be landlords and they’re banned then all their tenants should know about it. That just makes sense. So to have a position where a landlord can be banned in one borough and carry on renting in others just does not make sense at all.

“I agree that in the most serious cases just a fine becomes part of doing the business. Having the ability to confiscate the property and to protect the tenants from the behaviours of rogue or criminal landlords has to be the final issue.”

Wheeler would not comment about confiscating property and would only refer to councils’ existing powers. She said: “Councils already have a range of powers to tackle rogue landlords, including the ability to take over the management of privately rented properties.”