18/4/2008Lawyer says more must be done to protect families
ROGUE landlords should have slum homes taken from them and given to housing associations for repair, according to a Glasgow lawyer.
Mike Dailly, of the Govan Law Centre, said vulnerable families were at risk from landlords who exploit them in the city's Govanhill.
The area in the South Side has provided a gateway to Scotland for generations of immigrants, including Irish, Jewish and Asian families, and is now home to many Roma people from Eastern Europe.
Today the lawyer, who often works with deprived families in the South Side, said: "Govanhill has a unique cocktail of problems going back generations.
"There is nowhere else like it in the country.
"There are 600 private flats in the area below tolerable standard and at the same time great demand for homes.
"It can be a magnet for slum landlords.
"Councils need to be able to use compulsory purchase orders to take houses out of the control of the worst landlords."
Mr Dailly spoke out after a series of articles in the Evening Times this week exposing the appalling conditions of slum flats rented out by some rogue landlords.
We told how one cockroach-infested home, owned by Mohammed Aslam and home to a Slovakian Roma family of 11, had to be forcibly shut by the council.
Because the properties are rented out to families landlords do not need to comply with existing House in Multiple Occupancy legislation.
Mr Dailly praised the Evening Times for highlighting the issue.
Currently, councils can only tackle a problem area if more than half of its houses are known to be substandard.
Under new proposals local authorities would be able to inspect any property, guarantee access for repairs and force landlords to upkeep their homes.
And a council could force the sale of any property whose owner failed to maintain it.
The law centre has identified premises for an outreach office in Govanhill, which lawyers say is desperately needed to prevent the exploitation of migrant workers, many of whom don't speak English.
Mr Dailly said: "It would need a lot of money to take over these properties and give them to housing associations for repair.
"The investment could be recovered by letting out what would then be high-quality accommodation.
"It would be possible, if the Scottish Government would make funds available."
Shettleston MSP Frank McAveety has written to Health and Wellbeing Secretary Nicola Sturgeon calling for urgent talks on conditions in Govanhill.
He said: "The area has a problem with the proportion of houses below tolerable standard held by private landlords.
"We have to consider better legislation and new powers.
"It is critical more work is done to identify the resources needed to improve these homes."
A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said it was working closely with local housing associations but warned:
"Declaring somewhere as a housing renewal area will not solve housing issues in that area.
"A great deal of planning would be required to ensure those issues are tackled in the most effective way.
"The availability of resources would also be of huge significance."
Mike Dailly, of the Govan Law Centre, said vulnerable families were at risk from landlords who exploit them in the city's Govanhill.
The area in the South Side has provided a gateway to Scotland for generations of immigrants, including Irish, Jewish and Asian families, and is now home to many Roma people from Eastern Europe.
Today the lawyer, who often works with deprived families in the South Side, said: "Govanhill has a unique cocktail of problems going back generations.
"There is nowhere else like it in the country.
"There are 600 private flats in the area below tolerable standard and at the same time great demand for homes.
"It can be a magnet for slum landlords.
"Councils need to be able to use compulsory purchase orders to take houses out of the control of the worst landlords."
Mr Dailly spoke out after a series of articles in the Evening Times this week exposing the appalling conditions of slum flats rented out by some rogue landlords.
We told how one cockroach-infested home, owned by Mohammed Aslam and home to a Slovakian Roma family of 11, had to be forcibly shut by the council.
Because the properties are rented out to families landlords do not need to comply with existing House in Multiple Occupancy legislation.
Mr Dailly praised the Evening Times for highlighting the issue.
Currently, councils can only tackle a problem area if more than half of its houses are known to be substandard.
Under new proposals local authorities would be able to inspect any property, guarantee access for repairs and force landlords to upkeep their homes.
And a council could force the sale of any property whose owner failed to maintain it.
The law centre has identified premises for an outreach office in Govanhill, which lawyers say is desperately needed to prevent the exploitation of migrant workers, many of whom don't speak English.
Mr Dailly said: "It would need a lot of money to take over these properties and give them to housing associations for repair.
"The investment could be recovered by letting out what would then be high-quality accommodation.
"It would be possible, if the Scottish Government would make funds available."
Shettleston MSP Frank McAveety has written to Health and Wellbeing Secretary Nicola Sturgeon calling for urgent talks on conditions in Govanhill.
He said: "The area has a problem with the proportion of houses below tolerable standard held by private landlords.
"We have to consider better legislation and new powers.
"It is critical more work is done to identify the resources needed to improve these homes."
A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said it was working closely with local housing associations but warned:
"Declaring somewhere as a housing renewal area will not solve housing issues in that area.
"A great deal of planning would be required to ensure those issues are tackled in the most effective way.
"The availability of resources would also be of huge significance."