Posts tagged Hammersmith

Open Letter to my MP, Andy Slaughter, and to the MPs of London – Why the Housing Problem in London is a Matter of Urgency?

I feel like my brain is plucked out by the stress that I get from the abuse of power of today politicians.

"We dot abuse our power" may be the answer of all politicians after reading my first paragraph for sure.

But then, I ask; "How on earth, can you allow gaps in laws so openly that show that London’s landlords are allowed to abuse basic tenants’ rights in the most inhumane and cruel way and yet you tell me that today politicians are not abusing their power?

Dr ACactivism is an independent thinker and philosopher standing up for human ideals.

What is the problem? You ask, dear Andy Slaughter and you dear politicians and MPs of London.

As a matter of fact today laws allow landlords to abuse tenants' rights in different ways.

For example, even though you pay your rent, landlords can threaten you with eviction for no reason. Some give you a tenancy agreement and so do not. They can bully you and they can harass you and even leave you without electricity or gas, yet police will not attend the case or bother about you as a tenant. When your rights are abused.

Why not?

It is obvious that today laws give super powers to landlords because they are the owners of the property where you live and pay rent!

So police forces, for example, seem to have been advised to tolerate the abuse of Landlords.  

And this is personal experience. My last call to Met police U.K is with reference 6230 15/12 2021.

Reference sent by Met Police

I called Met Police and said; Landlord is trying to open my door by force and threaten me with eviction. Even though I have paid my rent. Yet the police did not attend and said; this is a civil matter. 

And the police are right, for it is in our laws that landlords can evict you without a reason. And eviction is not a criminal matter but a civil matter.

We see then, that this, dear Andy Slaughter and dear MPs of London, is not a problem of the police. But a problem of the MPs like you. Who make laws to abuse citizens. And allow the strongest to get away with heinous and horrible forms of abuse.

Why the Housing Problem today is an EMERGENCY?

Housing or shelter today is a matter of urgency. Because of Covid-19 occurrences that have worsened relations between landlord and tenant to its lowest point in British history.

For example, before the pandemic even though there was plenty of discrimination in the London housing market, still there were ways to find shelter easier than today after the pandemic. While today the majority of London landlords, (allow me to avoid the class think prejudice) have become like vicious wolves. Absolutely abusive and criminal.

Why?  What happened? you ask again.

In the pandemic, citizens of London had to live with people, that they used to see once or twice a day before the pandemic, 24 hours a day.

Isolation and overcrowding created depression and conflicts and made life a struggle for existence. Personally, I was part of this struggle.

According to the ONS statistics “Almost one in five adults (19.2%) were likely to be experiencing some form of depression, indicated by moderate to severe depressive symptoms, during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic (June 2020). This had almost doubled from around 1 in 10 (9.7%) before the pandemic (July 2019 to March 2020).”

Thus, these unforeseen circumstances created conflict. And homelessness. And some people did pay the rent and some did not because of the unforeseen circumstances.

From April to June 2020, according to ONS, the number of households owed a relief duty, that is homeless people, increased 16.9% from the same quarter in the previous year, linked to the Everyone In campaign. And driven by the 29.7% increase in single households (households without children) owed a relief duty over the same period. The number of households in temporary accommodation had increased 13.9% from the same quarter in the previous year, also linked to the Everyone In campaign and driven by a 45.9% increase single households in temporary accommodation.

In 2020-21, according to the same study, “The most common reason for loss of last settled home under relief was due to domestic abuse at 9,460 or 31.8% of households with children owed a relief duty. This is a 13.6% increase from 2019-20.

Why am I saying these facts to you or what is the today problem? You ask.

As a result of the pandemic, the pain of people has become BIGER. But the GREED of the Landlords of London properties is increased as well. For they are becoming even more greedy than before the pandemic. And this is a big problem.

 For example, letting agencies have made rules or laws within our laws, which are unacceptable rules that intend to make sure that only those earning above their “imaginary expectations” can get in their properties.

So, Problem number one today is the fact that whatever form of bully and eviction threats that come from London’s landlords is not a criminal matter but a civil matter.

An example, I went to meet Mary Keane on 7th December 2021. We agreed for a six months tenancy through a verbal agreement.

But from the first night in the property, I was left to shiver from cold because she refused to tell me where the “heating switch” is and did not turn the heating on at all. The next day I made a complaint, and I said, politely and humanely to turn the heating on. I offered to pay for all the bills. Yet the EGO and the GREED of Mary Keane was impossible to negotiate to my pain.

Verbal Agreement with Mary Keane, an evil greedy landlady in. Hammersmith

So Mary Keane of Hammersmith refused to tell me where the heating “switch” is and also left me without electricity. And then told me to go.

Abusing my basic needs. And playing the Aggressive BULLY that eats your heart alive simply because our laws allow the Landlords of London to do so.

She said, this complaint is too much for me, get out of my property. So easy was for her to throw me out after only a few days in the property.

My pain, my tears, my struggle everything dashed to nothing despite being a respectful tenant.

Why? Because my fate, my life, my rights as a human being depend on the Greed and sick ego of every London landlord that may share as such values.

So, I am telling a little painful story, that happened to me and that has happened many times in the past. because I demand change. And a law first of all to make a CRIMINAL matter harassment and eviction threats and eviction in itself. So police can attend the case, make notes and file prosecution charges to the abusive landlords.

 Problem number two is the fact that to get a room in your constituency of Hammersmith, where I live,  and in many areas of London, one needs to earn  2.5 times above the price of the rent. And this is but incredibly horrible. That means one needs to earn £1875 for a £750 room. Which is mean, ugly, monstrous, and disgusting abuse of social power.

There are the majority of Letting Agencies that have made as such rules today.

Let us, dear Andy Slaughter and dear MPs of London, do some little maths.

The national minimum wage for people who are over 23 years old is £8.91.

£8.91 x 48 hours = £427.68

£427.68 x 4 = £1,710.72

£1,710.72 x 12 months = £20,528

According to reed.co.uk, “On a £20,528 salary, your take home pay will be £17,621 after tax and National Insurance. This equates to £1,468 per month and £339 per week.

So these agencies are leaving out of their properties and denying the right to rent to the majority of working class people in London. And therefore the HOUSING PROBLEM in LONDON is a matter of urgency.

Problem number three;

Discrimination against the Housing Benefit Claimants continues for over 2 decades.

No DSS, screenshot taken on 15 12 2021

Housing benefit is not accepted by the majority of letting agencies and not accepted by the majority of the landlords of London. These facts are real and awash across the major letting websites, such as SpareRoom and OpenRent.

And we are seeing that you as MPs of London are not raising your voice for good in the U.K parliament to bring some form of change. And I demand a stop to this form of unbearable discrimination.

This problem of open discrimination towards London tenants, however, has been known since in 1998 at least.

A research paper called, Rent levels, affordability and housing benefit, that was written by Wendy Wilson and Bryn Morgan for the House of Commons Library  on 12lve June 1998. It says that “A recent survey by the Association of Residential Letting Agents found that existing housing benefit restrictions had

led to an increase in the number of landlords who refuse to let to benefit claimants; 48% of

respondents to the survey said they would not let to people on housing benefit.”

Problem number four, Rents are increasing with speedy steps. So we need a public organisation that can set limits to rents and allow us to breathe. A room in Hammersmith has increased from £650 to £750 within a year. And this is the fact that I see daily.

Screenshot taken on 15 12 2021

Problem number five – London councils abuse their power

Problem number five is the fact that Hammersmith Council works with letting agencies that discriminate and create pain. And no one can hold these thugs accountable.

Last, year, I told to Andy Slaughter how Hammersmith and Fulham council murdered a human being,  by driving him to hyper anxiety and over stress. Drove dozens and hundreds of people to tears, misery and pain. Evicted me illegally in the street with all my belongings. And pushed me personally to suicide through a continual and calculated  psychological abuse.

 Hammersmith council was caught red-handed working with abusive letting agencies that did not accept Housing Benefit.

I told you as my then MP of people screaming and pulling their hairs from the pain of the oppression of Hammersmith and Fulham council.

However, while living in the London's temporary accommodation, I saw many London councils in general do the same. Cause pain, threaten people with eviction and driving people to tears and self-hate.

Yet, as of today, December 2021, I see no change.  And I have not even received  a phone call by yourself as my MP, dear Andy Slaughter, to come and sit down and talk. Even though, I have sent you emails and asked to read one of my blogs that spoke of change.  

Nevertheless, this latest appeal now goes to all MPs of London. For the housing problem in London is a matter of urgency. And we have come to this day and moment from a continual abuse of tenants' rights by our laws.

SOLUTION. What is the solution?

There should be established an independent body, like those that were in England during 1970s and 1980s, that supervise the rent market. And a new law to engrave certain standards that comprise rights of the tenants.

And I think that this law should be made to create fairness and dignity through these standards.

Standard one; the law must make unreasonable eviction a criminal offence.  So police can get involved. And abusive landlords can be stopped on the spot.

Standard number two; the law should get rid of these ridiculous standards created after the pandemic by greedy letting agencies and cruel landlords. Facts which I mentioned as problem number two.

Standard number three; a law must once and forever stipulate the that it is criminal to discriminate against the unemployed in the housing market. Just like it is criminal to discriminate against colour of skin and sexual orientation.

Standard number four; the law should make rent limits and create public organisations that set the rent prices to a logical level. And as you see, we need a form of change that was brought by the Rent Act of 1977 that created the "Fair Rent Officer" ideas.

Standard number five; the law should punish councils, like any other public working body, that work with letting agencies that discriminate.   And councillors to be brought to justice.

Standard number six, lower the luxurious salaries of London's councillors, who have turned into PASHAS, getting super luxurious salaries for themselves of above £200,000. While London's councils are awash with homelessness.

As we see from the above facts and reasons, that there are a few things that are crucial to human dignity and fairness. And if a law considers ideas of fairness and human dignity then we shut down discrimination and abuse of power in the housing or shelter matter.

Failure to defend human dignity and fairness in this case is abuse of power in itself.

And this weight lies with you as an MP, dear Andy Slaughter, and with you dear MPs of London and with your colleagues who chose to become MPs in the U.K parliament as well.

P.S (Links that I have sent to you to read and consider;

Enough Is Enough - Make Discrimination in the housing market against the unemployed and the poor unlawful by engraving our Human Basic Right for accommodation into a LAW - Dr ACactivism - Philosopher https://www.dracactivism.com/enough-is-enough-make-discrimination-in-the-housing-market-against-the-unemployed-and-the-poor-unlawful-by-engraving-our-human-basic-right-for-accommodation-into-a-law/

https://www.dracactivism.com/donate-to-support-dr-acactivism/

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