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Louise Thomas
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A Labour MP is renting out flats in London scourged by black mould and ant infestations, his tenants have said.
Jas Athwal, the newly-elected MP for Ilford South, is parliament’s biggest landlord, co-owning a total of 18 rental properties, 15 of which are residential.
Redbridge Council, which Mr Athwal led until becoming an MP in July, has now been urged to investigate his properties after journalists and a City Hall member visited and spoke to tenants about the conditions there.
Describing himself as a “renters’ champion”, Mr Athwall told The Independent in a statement that he was “shocked at the reported condition of a number of the properties” and “profoundly sorry that tenants have been let down”.
In one block of seven flats owned by Mr Athwal, nearly half the tenants said they had to regularly clean their bathroom ceilings to remove mould, according to the BBC, which reported seeing evidence of ant infestations in a number of those properties, which are situated above a shop in Ilford.
“The ants are everywhere,” one resident was quoted as saying, while pointing to insects climbing up a door frame. “They are on my kid’s body and on their clothes.”
The communal areas in the properties were dirty and lights did not work, while fire alarms were hanging loose from the ceiling and a washing machine had been dumped next to a set of stairs, the BBC reported.
One resident said their family member is a “clean freak” who keeps scrubbing the black mould on their bathroom ceiling to keep it from spreading, while another said: “The whole ceiling would be black if we didn’t clean it every few weeks.”
None of the tenants spoken to wanted their names to be included, with some reportedly saying this was due to a fear of being evicted.
After receiving calls from the property manager during the journalist’s visit, residents reportedly became more hesitant to speak, with one who had spoken on camera later asking that the interview not be used and another later requesting not to publicise pictures of the mould, according to the BBC.
Another resident alleged that they had been threatened with eviction by the letting agent if they complained about problems in their flat or started claiming benefits.
In comments issued to the broadcaster, Mr Athwal said the properties were managed by an agency and that he was not aware of these problems, adding that he did not take on tenants in receipt of housing benefit in order to avoid conflicts of interest with his role as leader of Redbridge council.
The Labour MP said: “My properties are managed by an agency, selected for their quick response times and excellent customer service. This is evidenced by the long tenure of the tenants – over 87 years across 15 properties.
“I pride myself on being a good landlord and no tenants have ever been evicted. Repairs and improvements have been made to properties as recently as two weeks ago.
“To ensure tenants enjoy a secure, long-term home, rents are kept below market rate and, in many cases rents are frozen at the rate first agreed.”
But Andrew Boff, Conservative chair of the London Assembly – who has also visited the flats, spoken to residents and taken pictures of the mould – is calling on the Labour Party and Redbridge Council to investigate.
“I’m deeply concerned,” Mr Boff told the BBC. “I worry that there are people who are Jas Athwal’s tenants who are now frightened to speak for fear of being evicted.”
“We’ve heard this time and time again about how the threat of eviction is used to excuse poor maintenance of properties,” he added.
Mr Boff also raised concerns that Mr Athwal’s rental properties may not currently be signed up to the selective property licence scheme he introduced in December while leader of the council.
The seven properties did not appear on the council’s public register of licensed properties when searched for by The Independent.
Mr Athwal told the BBC: “Every Redbridge rental property I own is in full compliance with the landlord licence scheme, and have been since its creation. Landlords are contacted by the council when licences are due for renewal, this has not yet occurred for my properties but licences will be renewed when the notices are issued.”
But later contacted by The Independent, he said: “It was my understanding all the licences for my properties were up to date, but I have recently seen an email which shared that licences are due to expire, I am in the process of renewing all licences.”
Mr Athwal continued: “I want every one of my tenants to have excellent accommodation; I’m shocked at the reported condition of a number of the properties and have asked the managing agent for an explanation and immediate action to rectify any issues.
“I know it’s my responsibility to have issues addressed as soon as they arise and have met with the property management company to understand failures in communication. I’m profoundly sorry that tenants have been let down and will be reviewing the property management and how matters are escalated going forward.
“Repairs and maintenance will be done swiftly and I am, of course, more than happy for tenants to provide updates to journalists on the work.”
“I am a renters champion,” Mr Athwal added. “As council leader I implemented the most rigorous landlord licencing scheme in London in 2017, and expanded the scheme in 2023 and 2024 – the scheme would’ve been even stronger if Conservative housing secretaries had not repeatedly watered it down.
“In 2019, I led a campaign calling on government to abolish Section 21 evictions, further protecting tenants’ rights, which was again blocked by the Conservatives.”
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