A NEW scheme to stamp out rogue landlords and grotty bedsits in Morecambe has been launched.

The resort's landlords have been invited to a special meeting with the City Council so the rules of a new registration scheme can be explained.

By registering the properties the authority hope to keep a close eye on them to ensure that they are safe and well maintained.

The scheme is currently voluntary but will soon become compulsory for all landlords in the private sector.

The district has a disproportionate number of properties in multiple occupation, with many former hotels and guest houses converted into budget accommodation.

Said a council spokesman: "The district has 1,800 houses in multiple occupation, a much greater number than would normally be expected in an area this size. HMO's have consistently been found to represent the most dangerous form of living accommodation with the highest rate of accidents and deaths associated with inadequate fire safety measures and poorly maintained gas appliances. For this reason HMOs have always been the most regulated form of housing."

Last year residents in Seaborne Road and St Margaret's Road in Bare lobbied the council to get tough on landlords who let substandard properties to people who have a range of social problems.

The Government has given councils new powers to deal with the problem and the new registration scheme is a step in that direction.

The spokesman added: "HMO's can cause problems for the wider community as well as for particular tenants. Aware of this fact the council chose to adopt the version of a licensing scheme which includes special control provisions."

This means that not only are standards set for the physical condition and quality of management of these properties but that conditions are set down to help regulate the behaviour of occupants."

The meeting with HMO owners is on September 24 at Morecambe Town Hall.

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