Ex-Tory Mayor’s property company prosecuted for unlicensed HMO

Ex-Tory Mayor’s property company prosecuted for unlicensed HMO

9:51 AM, 21st December 2016, About 8 years ago 4

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Mark Shooter, last year’s Conservative Mayor of Barnet, is a director of Kingscroft Estates who have been prosecuted for renting out an unlicensed HMO next to Mornington Crescent tube station in London.hypocrisy

The company was ordered by Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court  to pay £8,540 for a property housing 14 tenants with one small kitchen. Environmental health officers also found rat droppings in a storage room and access to an unguarded flat roof.

Shooter is a Conservative ward councillor for Hendon and has denied claims by Labour that the prosecution was an embarrassment despite Barnet Council issuing warnings to approximately 2,000 HMO landlords that they could face prosecution for not applying for HMO licences.

Shooter claims the property was used as a hostel for the homeless and the tenants had not been paying rent themselves, and said he was proud to be helping people. “If I had known the property didn’t have the correct licence I would have been very keen for it to get it, but I have several other businesses that I’m involved with and sometimes you rely on other people to ensure that a business is run correctly.”

Barry Rawlings, Barnet Labour leader,  said “there’s no excuse for it. It’s about how you treat people, and to allow people to live in that sort of state should not be allowed.”

However, Richard Cornelius, Leader of Barnet Council  said “we take housing standards very seriously in Barnet and enforce against instances of poor conditions. This particular matter is a private matter for Mark Shooter and has been dealt with through the courts. It is not connected to his role as a Hendon ward councillor.”

Mr Shooter confirmed that he has now taken on the management of the property personally.


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terry sullivan

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10:48 AM, 21st December 2016, About 8 years ago

another witch hunt?

Larry Sweeney

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12:22 PM, 21st December 2016, About 8 years ago

If Mr Shooter was not charging rent, then I doubt he would need a licence. The Court therefore must not have accepted his defence, and since he now has obtained a licence one can only presume that rent was indeed being charged. That aside however, I agree with by Terry Sullivan that it is all part of the Witch hunt against the PRS.

patrick maher

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10:22 AM, 22nd December 2016, About 8 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Larry Sweeney" at "21/12/2016 - 12:22":

"the tenants had not been paying rent themselves". Isn't the clue in the word themselves?

AP

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10:30 AM, 24th December 2016, About 8 years ago

It's not really fair to say it's a witch hunt is it? He broke the law and was clearly receiving rent from some agency to house the homeless. It's people like that who give the rest of us a bad name.

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