Recently Wembley Matters carried the news that members of the London Renters Union in Hackey had won £400k from Hackney Council to address issues of mould and damp in privately rented accommodation.
Asked for a comment the Brent branch of London Renters Union said:
We say well done to Hackney Council - they will invest a further £400,000 in the housing standards enforcement team to crack down on mould and damp. Stronger enforcement means that is harder for landlords to get away with forcing renters into dangerous conditions. This will hopefully improve the health and well-being of tens of thousands of people and raise standards of accommodation.
We hope Brent will follow.
Although Brent agreed to our demand to try to bring in borough-wide licensing, this on its own won't be sufficient - just look at the level of dangerous hazards in areas that already have licensing, like Mapesbury and Kensal Green. In addition to this, we trust they'll continue to lobby energetically the national government for the protections that private renters deserve. After all, most private renters are handing over a huge percentage of their income to property owners! haveyoursay.brent.gov.uk/en-GB/projects [ go to pg 29]
