Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee 18 March 2025
I am going to bring up the idea of having Awaab’s law in Scotland again, if I may, because it is directly relevant to the question. The bottom line is that, until Awaab Ishak—the two-year-old child who lived in Rochdale—died, landlords were not dealing with the problem at all. They were rushed into dealing with it because it was suddenly a major problem for the authorities—the Governments in Edinburgh and London—after the coroner ruled that the death was caused by mould and damp. Before that, it was not considered to be a major problem, but it has been a major problem for years. There has to be proper statutory intervention—there has to be Awaab’s law in Scotland, and it must be better than the law that they have down south.
What would that law be? Number 1: it would require accurate and up-to-date property condition information based on comprehensive stock condition surveys, having an accurate database and knowing what the problems are. For example, when a home became void, you would go in and examine it to see if there was any damp or mould. You would have annual inspections in addition to any stock condition survey, and you would have accurate intelligible information about the condition of your stock.
Number 2: all employees of private and social landlords would need to be trained in identifying damp and mould, and any specialist contractors that they used would have to be trained and certificated in dealing with damp and mould. That would encourage landlords to be proactive instead of being reactive, as they tend to be now, and relying on tenants’ complaints. Tenants should not have to bear the burden of identifying damp and mould. For too long, the housing sector has lacked the knowledge and has been totally inadequate in dealing effectively with damp and mould.
We would also say that landlords must investigate all cases of damp and mould within a robust and specific timeframe. That would consist of information gathering; a thorough walk-through inspection of the external and internal parts of a property, in which precise measurements would be taken; and a systematic approach to addressing the root causes of the problems, ensuring long-term resolution and prevention.