New data reveals councils are barely taking over empty homes anymore, amid calls for a new national programme to bring unused properties back into use.
Council officers being deprived of access to council info essential to their work seems wrong. Can they do something to interpret the GDPR differently?
I tried (for Friends of the Earth) to prompt Harrogate Council to take action on empty houses. P-T officer very helpful but every dwelling seemed to offer complex problems. Suggest Council Tax rules be amended to make full year charge to apply on day 1 of Financial year. But maybe scope for offering some incentive to owners if they release house to the market/social arena? Could save a lot of officer/legal time. On a separate tack, we ought to publicise all the royal and aristocratic landholder dwellings that are empty (or on occasional use). What contribution are they prepared to counter the housing shortage?
Council officers being deprived of access to council info essential to their work seems wrong. Can they do something to interpret the GDPR differently?
Well done for highlighting this issue.
I tried (for Friends of the Earth) to prompt Harrogate Council to take action on empty houses. P-T officer very helpful but every dwelling seemed to offer complex problems. Suggest Council Tax rules be amended to make full year charge to apply on day 1 of Financial year. But maybe scope for offering some incentive to owners if they release house to the market/social arena? Could save a lot of officer/legal time. On a separate tack, we ought to publicise all the royal and aristocratic landholder dwellings that are empty (or on occasional use). What contribution are they prepared to counter the housing shortage?