MP: 'Too many in city live in mouldy homes'

'TOO many' Plymouth families are living in unacceptable conditions, a Plymouth MP has said. MP for Sutton and Devonport, Luke Pollard, is urging families to reach out for help if their homes are damp or mouldy.

- KATIE TIMMS

Mr Pollard said that as winter approaches and people are worried to use their heating due to rising energy costs, it is likely to "lead to a spike in mould problems". It comes in the wake of the tragic death of Awaab Ishak, who died in December 2020, at just two years old.

Awaab died from a respiratory condition caused by mould in the one-bedroom housing association flat in Rochdale, Greater Manchester. His parents, Faisal Abdullah and Aisha Amin, repeatedly complained about the mould.

The Government stripped new funding from Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH) the housing organisation responsible for the property where he died. And they have warned funding will be blocked from other failing associations as it is estimated tens of thousands of homes are unsafe due to mould and damp.