Tenant Labor MP open country flat

A Labor MP rented an apartment with black mold and an ant infestation, the BBC has discovered.

Jas Athwal, the newly elected MP for Ilford South, owns 15 rental apartments, making him the biggest landlord in the House of Commons.

In one block of seven flats owned by Mr. Athwal, almost half of the tenants said they had to regularly clean the bathroom ceiling to remove mold.

The BBC also saw evidence of ant infestations at some of the seven properties.

“Ants are everywhere,” said one resident, pointing to the insects climbing the door frame. “They are on my son’s body and on his clothes.”

Other residents said they were threatened with eviction by letting agents if they complained about problems in their apartments or started demanding benefits.

Mr Athwal said the property was managed by an agency, he was not aware of the issue, and denied any tenants were threatened with eviction.

He said he did not take tenants on housing benefit to avoid a conflict of interest with his role as local council leader.

He describes himself as a “tenant champion”.

In 2018 Mr Athwal, who chaired Redbridge Council from 2014 until becoming an MP last month, shared an article about a local landlord who had been fined by the council, write: “Rogue landlord, we’re coming for you.”

But Andrew Boff, a Conservative member of the London Assembly who has also visited the flat, called on the Labor Party and Redbridge Council to investigate.

According to Redbridge Council’s website Mr Athwal needs a selected property license to rent a block of seven properties, a system he introduced in December as council leader.

A search of the council’s public license register showed that none of the seven properties had a licence. The BBC has seen evidence which suggests that one in seven properties is unlicensed.

We have also asked Redbridge Council to confirm this information. He had not responded at the time of publication.

Mr Athwal stepped down from his post as council leader last month after being elected to Parliament. He said it was “in line with” the landlord licensing scheme.

When I visited the property, which is above a vacant shop in Ilford, the communal areas were dirty and the lights were not working.

A fire alarm hung from the ceiling, and a washing machine had been dumped next to the stairs.

One resident showed me black mold growing on the bathroom ceiling, adding that a family member is a “clean freak” who keeps scrubbing the area with bleach to keep the mold at bay.

Others said they had googled black fungus and realized it could be poisonous.

“The whole ceiling would be black if we didn’t clean it every few weeks,” he said.

I knocked on every door and spoke to most of the tenants. No one wants their name used. Some specifically say this is due to fear of eviction.

“Don’t use my name,” said the resident. “Finding a new flat is very difficult.”

Most of the people I spoke to said that Mr. Athwal and his property manager were slow to respond to complaints or did not respond at all.

While I was on the block, the property manager was notified of my visit and the tenants started getting calls from him. After receiving the call, he became hesitant to talk to me. This seems to me intimidating.

One of the residents who spoke on camera about the problem with the flat later asked us not to use the interview and another asked me not to use the picture of the mold two days after allowing me to take a picture of it.

Labour’s 2024 general election manifesto includes a commitment to “prevent private tenants from being exploited and discriminated against”.

“I am very concerned,” said Conservative Andrew Boff, who has also visited the flats, spoken to residents and taken pictures of the mould.

“I am concerned that there are people who are tenants of Jas Athwal who are now afraid to speak for fear of being evicted.”

“We have heard again and again how threats of eviction are being used on the grounds of poor property maintenance,” he said.

He called on the Labor Party and Redbridge Council to investigate Mr Athwal.

“Here we have a situation where someone is at the helm of Redbridge Council, who’s introducing a licensing scheme, who’s telling people to sign up, and they’re not doing it themselves,” he said.

Mr Athwal did not respond to requests for an interview but said in a statement: “My property is managed by an agency, chosen for its quick response time and excellent customer service. Over 15 properties.

“I pride myself on being a good landlord and no tenants have been evicted. Repairs and improvements have been made in the last two weeks.

“To ensure tenants enjoy secure, long-term housing, rents are kept below market rates and, in many cases, rents are frozen at agreed rates.

“Every Redbridge rental property I have is in full compliance with the landlord license scheme, and has since been created. Landlords are contacted by the council when the license is renewed, this has not happened for the property but the license will be renewed. when the announcement has been published.”

Around 60 MPs currently receive income from rental properties, according to Parliament’s latest list of interests.