Forum Topic

Illegal Back Garden Housing in Southall

Tonight's Channel 4 TV show 'Dispatches' featured illegal Indian immigrants living in illegal sheds in Southall back gardens.Ealing Council didn't cover itself with glory in the programme. It said that last year 149 Housing Enforcement Notices were issued in Ealing. When this is compared to the 194,907 Parking Enforcement Notices which were issued last year in Ealing, it shows a distinct lack of interest in curtailing illegal housing in Southall and the whole of Ealing.The programme also highlighted the worst practices of rogue slum landlords. The government's own figures estimate that out of 3.4 million private rented properties in this country, 1.36 million were in poor condition.

Eric Alan Leach ● 5390d22 Comments

At last, a member responds. It only took just over two months.===============================================Hi Graham,I have asked enforcement to respond to your e-mail.Best Regards,Sitarah AnjumLabour Councillor for Perivale wardEaling Council C/O Members RoomEaling Town HallNew BroadwayLondon W5 2BY==============================>>> GRAHAM J WEEKS 07/29/11 7:57 AM >>>I have emailed Sarah again since the email below. NO RESPONSE. WHAT IS THE COUNCIL'S STANDARD TIME FOR RESPONSE BY OFFICERS TO RESIDENTS?The shed with a bed was occupied last night and is regularly occupied.Graham J Weeks ===========================--- On Mon, 23/5/11, GRAHAM J WEEKS wrote:> From: GRAHAM J WEEKS > Subject:  LEE ROAD PERIVALE LONDON UB6 7DA GREENFORD> To: "Sarah Marshall" > Cc: "Sitarah Anjum" > Date: Monday, 23 May, 2011, 17:44> Now once again we see evidence of overnight use of the> building in the garden. Please investigate and inform me of> the result.

Graham Weeks ● 5363d

Then if he has publicly replied, where is it?

Mark Green ● 5377d

Well Julian Bell is quoted in the article on the 'Dispatches' story on the Ealing Today web site.One would not expect his comments to appear on Ealing Council's web site as it is the purveyor of only good news stories. For example many of us are still waiting for the Council to announce on its web site that the Council-supported Arcadia 26 storey residential tower block led development has been turned down by national government. After all, this only happened in December 2009....

Eric Alan Leach ● 5377d

Article in Ealing Gazette has Mr Julian Bell saying that Ealing Council has provided a full response to the dispatches programme. I can not find it anywhere on the Ealing Council website or anywhere else. Does anyone know where this response can be found?

Ewan Martin ● 5377d

Which exact law are you quoting?

George Knox ● 5379d

You could still put the immigrants who refuse to be identified into jail until they tell us who they are. And please do not tell me that this is an infringement of their human rights! They could sew mail bags or do something useful until they admit who they are. I can't see me getting off a parking charge by destroying my documents and this is worse!

Siobhan McGurty ● 5379d

Re  I can see no reason why Ealing Council should provide quality housing for illegals.            xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx    that's why they do nothing about the shanty towns springing up  over London. Apparently the back gardens  visible from the Picadilly line in the Hounslows directions  show the same, so we have 2 reasons why  the Authorities do nothing. A) scared of being tagged racist and b) having to house the occupants of the sheds etc if they get removed. Parts of London will soon look like parts of Lagos and other shanty towns. Just another benefit of mass immigration, another racist remark, you'll see.

Tony Price ● 5379d

Without trawling the intricate detail, I think now overseas visitors have to provide finger prints. That of course does not help as regards the earlier generations of illegal immigrants.

George Knox ● 5380d

One of Ealing's most senior Police Officers told a public meeting in West Ealing this week that a major facet of illegal immigrants is that as soon as they arrive in this country they throw away their passports and so UK officialdom from that point on can't figure out who they are and what their migrant status might be.

Eric Alan Leach ● 5380d

On the narrower point in this particular thread about removing illegal immigrants, I heard a comment which made me wonder if there is a duty on our local police to root out illegal immigrants. While this may sound odd, I do think people should clarify with the police whether they have a duty and if so how far do they go with a case where someone is not entitled to live here. Also do all police get involved with this or only certain sections, and how many of those types of police do we have in the borough.I do know that the Immigration and Border Control agency do swoops, but how often? I think that depressing TV programme also touched on how difficlt it is to apprehend illegals - let alone the hurdles of the Human Rights legislation which then confront the authorities.

George Knox ● 5380d

I saw this program too and was shocked by what it reported. If Ealing Council is not doing anything about it, is this against the law? Does the ET forum know any lawyers who would know this? Or perhaps I could dial the new 101 number! :)

Mark Green ● 5381d

Mr Rutherford Please respond.

Arthur Breens ● 5383d

The real question here is why aren't the immigration services, police, and Ealing Council not deporting these illegal immigrants. I can see no reason why Ealing Council should provide quality housing for illegals. I pay a big wedge in taxes, national insurance, and council tax. I want to see these people either paying their way or going home!

Max Darcy ● 5383d

Yes Ben you are right. If every LA in the rest of the country finds it difficult then isn't it their duty to get the law changed. By writing to Mr Pickles?  Has Mr Rutherford written to Mr Pickles? I doubt if much was done before the cuts either. There isn't a CAB in Ealing and that leaves a few charities to help those in difficulties. We saw from the programme that the law fails to protect the weakest in our society. Mr Rutherford please respond.

Arthur Breens ● 5389d

I will have a go at Ealing as much as anyone when they fail, but on the issue of lack of prosecutions of landlords it is not just Ealing who is failing.  It is every local authority in the country. Local authorities seem unable to enforce the existing legislation because they are seeing their funding cut. Remember it is not just the present adminstration that is failing, since Ealing's Tories fared no better.Thousands more homeless people will be forced into the private rented sector under plans to change the homelessness legislation. And tenants’ chances of enforcing what’s left of their rights will get even slimmer once Legal Aid is cut.

Ben Owen ● 5389d

Thank you Eric for directing me to this programme. What chaos. A government that makes laws and a local authority that fails to enforce them. Some officers working for Ealing (I like to think they are working for us) are not doing their jobs. Who are these officers who are not doing their jobs? Let us name and shame them here. No better still lets name and shame those who are in charge of these departments on salaries in excess of say £80,000.

Arthur Breens ● 5389d

Is there a relationship between local councillors and businesses. If neighbours are all doing the same thing then will anyone report it.

Peter Chadburn ● 5389d

Shelter are calling on the Government to raise standards of rented accommodation and to properly protect tenants from rogue landlords. There is a petition on their website to fill in. Please do sign it: www.shelter.org.uk

Ben Owen ● 5389d

I would like to see a councillor responding here as officers are dumb.

Graham Weeks ● 5389d

Why are Ealing Council so disinterested in this illegal activity? Let's hope Channel 4 might wake them up!

Steve Chilcott ● 5389d

Sheds with beds it is called.  IIRC one can cover up to a third of one's back garden with a bungalow like building, no planning permission required, but one cannot have people live in it. Such is the case next door to me in Perivale. The building is occupied overnight. But despite numerous emails to Planning, Ealing officers have done sweet FA to stop the law breaking. I have never seen the landlord who lives up north. BTW, traffic offenders may be caught on camera or by wardens. OTH if you report a planning breach you will be told to supply your own photographs all to no avail.

Graham Weeks ● 5389d

I'm sure I saw something about this on TV a few months ago but I can't remember which programme. Dispatches seem a bit slow off the mark.

Susan Kelly ● 5390d