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A Newry, Mourne and Down District Council councillor has questioned Belfast City Council’s (BCC) control over Houses of Multiple Occupation with concerns the NI house share policy is “dumping” people into settled areas.
The Council’s recent environment committee agreed to increase application fees for HMOs as BCC looks to recover almost £1m in costs linked to the licences.
However, the chamber also heard a call for HMOs to be done away with, over concerns of “grief and anxiety” wherever they “spring up”.
Mournes councillor Henry Reilly said: ”I am slightly confused, do HMOs need formal planning approval?
“Because everywhere that they spring up they cause a lot of grief within settled communities as you can get people who are being placed in them by statutory agencies.
“Some people would call it ‘dumping’, but I wouldn’t call placing any human ‘dumping’, but certainly it does cause anxiety for local communities where these things can be set up.
“Certainly I would prefer if there were none of them at all.
“It is very important that we get that clarification and put people’s minds at rest.”
HMOs are residences leased out to three or more separate unrelated tenants.
The house shares have sparked recent controversy with claims of antisocial behaviour being caused by some unruly tenants.
Slieve Croob councillor Helena Young added: ”We generally support tighter regulation of houses of multiple occupancy to protect community cohesion and living standards.
“We push for planning decisions that oppose the high densification of HMOs in single areas and we have called for a moratorium on new HMOs in specific areas.
“We also support holding landlords accountable for the safety and wellbeing of tenants.”
A council officer responded:”The HMO unit in Belfast City Council maintains the licencing scheme for all councils in NI.
“I will speak to the officers in Belfast and also our internal planning department regarding your query Cllr Reilly.”
