Hillingdon Labour leader demands crack down on rogue landlords

Councillor Mo Khursheed, leader of the Hillingdon Labour Group writes:

'With the economy essentially in recession and Tory cuts beginning to bite, there is mounting evidence to suggest that families are struggling to meet the cost of decent affordable housing. Those who cannot are placed in a catch 22 situation; either they approach the Council for statutory help and risk being shunted to other parts of the country or are forced into substandard and overcrowded ‘sheds with beds’.
 
Hillingdon is characterised by mixed and diverse communities, it’s what makes this Borough great. However welfare policies being introduced by the government will change the face of our Borough; by 2016 only 49% of Hillingdon will be affordable to recipients of Local Housing Allowance. It is inevitable that this will force more people into these so called Sheds with Beds. The quality of accommodation can be so bad, it not only poses a risk to the inhabitants, but to surrounding properties and residents through unsound construction and fire hazards. Isn’t it about time we tackle this problem and highlight the threat these unlawful buildings pose?

I have asked the Council for data on the suspected illegal use of outbuildings as homes throughout the Borough, only to be told there is no database that can provide this level of detail – how can this be? How can a responsible Council not have access to this information? Our Borough has merely 2 enforcement officers progressing enforcement notices and prosecutions on specifically tackling this one issue. Is it any wonder then, that members enquires on the issue from Labour Councillors have gone unanswered?

May I suggest that Councillor Puddifoot and his Cabinet take a look at neighbouring, Labour controlled, Ealing. Since October its planning team have inspected over 700 suspected illegal outbuildings used for residential purposes, completed 252 investigations and issued 73 enforcement notices. By pledging £250,000 and 6 dedicated enforcement officers, Ealing Council, who are making similar budgetary savings, have shown our Council how to tackle this problem.

It is to simplistic to hope that by just cracking down on rogue landlords the problem will disappear. As demand for housing continues to outstrip supply, it is imperative that affordable housing continue to be supported. Indeed, at last month’s Council meeting we put forward a motion affirming Labour’s commitment to affordable social housing, only for the Tory majority to demonstrate how out of touch they are by dismissing it out of hand.

Hillingdon Council must take a tougher stance on this issue. It must ensure proactive inspections of suspect properties, it must do more to enforce existing laws, and it must respond to tip offs from residents. However a tougher stance can only be demonstrated through action; Hillingdon Council needs to provide sufficient resources so that unscrupulous landlords can be prosecuted.   

 

My aim is not to weaken the rights of landlords. It is about doing what is right. This means tackling the minority of landlords who are unscrupulous, rogue and are profiteering from the exploitation of the desperate and the most vulnerable by housing them in the 21^st Century’s slums. As we mark 200^th anniversary of Charles Dickens, do we really want a return to the conditions he so vividly described?