GBC still needs to ensure all properties are electrically safe; at least Awaab’s Law* will force them to spend the money they should have continued to spend, at the time.

In the words of Iain Doyle, the senior director who was effectively forced to resign over the affair, the safety of residents is more important than money.

It needs to be recognised that GBC has always had sufficient money in its ring-fenced Housing Revenue Account. It is only the separate general fund that is financially stretched.

This separation of funds ensures that money from rents and housing services can only be spent on managing, maintaining, and improving council housing, and cannot be used for other council services and vice-versa. This is stipulated by laws like the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

So, in short, the council has always had the money to improve the life of its social housing residents, it has just chosen not to.

*a UK regulation for social housing, effective October 2025, requiring landlords to fix serious hazards like damp and mold within strict timeframes (e.g., investigate damp/mold within 10 working days, make safe in 5 days), ensuring tenants have safe homes after the tragic death of Awaab Ishak, a toddler, from mold exposure. It mandates investigation and repair for emergency issues (like gas leaks, broken boilers) and significant hazards, covering damp/mold initially, with plans to expand to other hazards.