Rent increase

Last night's Housing Committee meeting increased council house rents by 5.9%. This is a very big increase at a time when inflation is dropping towards 2%.

The Labour/Lib Dem Administration had originally proposed a much higher increase of 7%; I had an increase of 5% in mind; in the end 5.9% was an acceptable compromise.

There are a number of reasons why we need to increase our rents so much. The first is that previous Labour/Lib Dem administrations have saddled us with £125 million in housing debt. 34p of every pound paid in rent goes to pay interest on that debt. Yet we are demolishing schemes such as Maxwelltown where huge amounts of cash were spent just a few years ago.

The second is that we need to improve our houses to meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standard. This is pretty basic and it's not to the Council's credit that we have to spend so much to bring our council houses up to scratch.

The third is that we're clearing various multi storey developments. Many of the tenants are going to housing association properties, so we lose their rents. We are also losing houses through the Right to Buy ... although we get some money in from sales, the rent is lost for ever.

Finally, we could be more efficient. It takes us 68 days to relet one of our more popular houses, and 80 days for less popular houses. Why does it take so long? If we could improve our performance here by just one week, we'd bring in an extra £70,000 in rent.

We supported the 5.9% increase reluctantly. But if and when the SNP becomes Dundee's administration, reletting houses much more swiftlywill be one of our first priorities.

Housing Department under fire?

I note that Radio Tay is carrying a story that housing bosses are under fire for not carrying out nearly 700 gas safety checks. I've brought this issue up with the Housing Department and the subject comes up at the Housing Committee tonight (24 November). According to the paper being presented to the meeting, 92% of checks have been done, but that means 8% haven't been done. And 8% adds up to nearly 700 homes. I'm glad to say the Housing Department is working hard to put things right, and fewer tenants are now waiting for their safety checks, but I'm still concerned.

Dundee's burns - a source of power?

The Scottish Government wants 1000 mini hydro electric generators in Scotland, and I think two or three of them could be in Dundee. Here's a news release carried by the Evening Telegraph which says a bit more ...

Hydro power for Dundee? Coldside Councillor investigates ...

A Dundee councillor says power from Dundee's burns could help cut fuel bills, and reduce the city's carbon footprint at the same time. Cllr Jimmy Black says the possibility of hydro power on the Dighty and other burns is worth further study.

"Before the city spread out in Victorian times there were several important burns flowing through Dundee, some of which powered water wheels on mills. The Dighty looks the most promising - I'm told there were four water mills on that burn. There was also a mill at the foot of Commercial Street, powered partly by water which flowed through an aqueduct from Albert Square.

"In my own ward we have the Dens Burn, which now surges through a culvert underneath Dens Road; and an old map shows that the Wallace Burn flowed down under the Dens Brae to the Harbour. I think the Wallace Burn and Dens Burn are probably the same thing, but I'd be delighted if anyone could provide further information."

Councillor Black's researches follow a Scottish Government call for 1,000 micro hydro schemes across Scotland to cut carbon emissions and save fuel costs. New technology means that hydro schemes no longer need to be on a large scale.

"If we could provide enough electrical power from a burn for the street lights in a small housing scheme, or heating in a sheltered housing complex, that would make it worth the effort. Along with other small scale schemes such as the use of windpower, bringing Dundee's burns back into use could help make the city greener and save us all some money."

Councillor Black has written to the Director of Planning and Transportation, Mike Galloway, asking for more information about the city's watercourses. He has also been in touch with Dundee's Sun City project and staff at the University of Dundee.

"I'm hoping that someone with resources and expertise will take this suggestion forward," said Councillor Black. "There are grants available from various agencies for feasibility studies, and even more grants to assist with the cost of building small scale hydro schemes. I strongly believe this is worth further study and I will take every chance to push the idea wherever I can."