City Strolls Across Scotland (Agahst)
NEWS FROM THE EAST - DUNDEE CAMPAIGN NEWS
A Day at the Courts
The last two weeks have witnessed some important developments in Dundee. The local press has seen a marked increase in articles and letters on issues relating to the council's letting policy and the demolition issue.
The case of William and Gladys Storrier has grabbed public attention. Their fight against eviction continues following a hearing on Monday morning during which the baillie who presided ruled that their legal team should be given a further six weeks in order to present their case fully.
The council's legal representative agreed to waive expenses and also attempted to introduce a compromise whereby the Storrier's would be allowed to remain in their ground floor flat until suitable accommodation was found for them.
The Storrier's legal rep pointed out that this would represent queue jumping, which formed the basis of the council's legal case against the Storrier's. The main basis of the Storrier's defence was argued on the basis of the civil and human rights dimension. The elderly couple's legal brief convincingly argued that there would be a marked and rapid deterioration in the standard of life and health of Gladys in particular were the couple to be forced back to their second floor flat in the next tenement.
The case will be dealt with on the 29th August. The same court also dealt with the case of the family of Mrs Patricia Williamson who were forced by Abertay Housing Association (that's Arbertay HA not Arbitrary Housing Assoc., though you might wonder) to pay the rent for Mrs Williamson's flat following her death. The family had asked for a period of grace in order to clear their mother's flat but were shocked to receive a demand for rent from Abertay even before they were able to complete their mother's funeral arrangements.
In another related story, an elderly widow is to take legal action against the City Council following their failure to decant the woman and her husband into a ground floor flat. The woman is arguing that the failure of the Council led to the premature death of her husband.
The Storrier's court case on Monday was also very revealing for the other case that were called. There were scores of cases involving the pursuit of back rent from council tenants, including the case of a woman with three children whose housing benefit does not cover her full housing costs. The council were demanding that £2.85 be deducted from her benefits in order to cover the short fall.
There were many other cases involving rent arrears of a few hundred pounds, which resulted in the seizing of benefits on behalf of the council. There was something frankly nauseating about the spectacle of healthy and affluent lawyers and legal teams demanding the expropriation of £2-3 per week from the benefits of some of the poorest and most vulnerable people in Dundee.
Finally, it is quite clear that there is growing anger and a willingness to fight by council and housing association tenants against the increasingly punitive approach of their landlords. However, it is also equally clear - with bells on - that organisation is needed and that tenants in different areas with different landlords need to come together in order to properly fight the developing offensive against tenants rights in Dundee.