Aberdeen families Trapped by Raac are now worried they could be pushed out of their homes by Christmas following remarks by city council co-leader Christian Allard.
At The Press and Journal’s Raac debate, the SNP member for Torry and Ferryhill repeatedly told Balnagask homeowners that “we can’t have another winter with people living in these houses.”
‘This isn’t leadership – it’s intimidation’
During the gathering, which included more than 50 people directly impacted by the Torry concrete crisis, Mr Allard said he was of this urgent belief due to advice from “his engineers”.
But if the motive behind the repeated blanket statement was to expedite the voluntary acquisition process, whereby ACC is attempting to buy back Raac-ridded properties so it can demolish the site, it likely had the opposite outcome.
“Councillor Allard’s claim that Raac-affected residents can’t stay another winter is dangerous and deeply irresponsible, especially given that none of the affected [private] properties have been inspected,” said Raymond Davidson of the Torry Community Raac Campaign group.
“He is declaring homes ‘unsafe beyond winter’ without any evidence to support it.
“This isn’t leadership—it’s intimidation. His words amount to a threat: leave your home, or else. Threatening people with forced displacement and destitution, without clear guarantees of fair compensation or safe alternatives, is unacceptable.
“Residents need support, not pressure.”
‘It is imperative that homeowners respond to our letters,’ Allard says
We went back to Mr Allard to seek clarification on what he meant by the statement, made numerous times during the debate on Friday.
“All the houses were found to be at a high risk level. The advice is that this level can only worsen over another winter,” he said.
“This is why we worked hard to move our tenants before last Christmas, as we were concerned about people living in these houses.
“It is therefore imperative that owner occupiers respond without delay to the letter [they have received] with the council’s proposals. It’s about safety for them and their families.”
‘If it’s really about safety why won’t they let me sell my house?’
The urgent nature of Mr Allard’s statements came as a surprise to residents in the room on Friday. Amie Bruce reluctantly tried to accept a council offer on her home, for around £40,000 less than its previous valuation, back in December, just so she could “move on” with her life.
“But despite emailing both ACC and the Valuation Office almost every evening, I’ve heard nothing. I can’t even say I have ‘accepted an offer’ because they haven’t even responded to that.
“If it’s really about safety, why isn’t there a rush?”
‘Act now Allard, before trust is completely gone’
TCRC echoed this sentiment.
“If he truly believes resident safety is paramount, the solution is in his hands: agree to the community’s proposals,” added Raymond.
“Refusing to offer a deal that is not only fairer for residents but also significantly more financially beneficial to the council is a choice that only he [Mr Allard] can make.
“Torry residents deserve facts, not fear. If homes are unsafe, prove it. If they’re not, stop using scare tactics. Either way, residents need solutions, not headlines.
“We call on councillor Allard to stop inflaming the situation and start delivering a fair solution—before trust is further broken beyond repair.”
Worries remain as questions are left unanswered
Through our Trapped by Raac campaign, we have been asking for fair house prices and an eventual public enquiry for homeowners in Aberdeen impacted by this crisis.
In the face of worried residents, we therefore pressed councillor Allard for clarity.
We asked him if he was suggesting there’s a possibility homeowners could be out for Christmas.
After four requests to answer, he told us it was a matter for Building Standards.*
He was also asked if his engineers’ belief that another winter could make things worse, could the reported “high risk” become critical?
His response was to stress the importance of homeowners engaging with the council to mitigate against the risk of things worsening, either through demolition or one of the other suggestions deemed viable. This could include households paying up to £40,000 to have their own roofs repaired.
‘We believe all Raac houses are at high risk,’ confirms Allard
We also asked him to confirm which houses he meant when he said “all the houses are high risk”.
“Do you mean ACC stock? Because you don’t actually know the state of private properties, do you?”
He replied: “All Raac houses.
“We know that they are high risk because of the way the Raac has been used to support the roof of this development of houses. 150 properties have been inspected by engineers. Their assessment is that all of the 500 houses are at high risk.”
Mr Allard then added: “You have made my point for me. We took the safety risk to our tenants very seriously. And as you said we don’t know if the Raac within those houses will last another winter.”
Residents say winter threat is scaremongering
Homeowner John Meiklejohn described the co-leader’s words as a “veiled threat”, saying he’ll need to be forced out of his home if any moves are made to get them to vacate this side of Christmas.
The co-leader was accused of scaremongering and gaslighting. Fiona and Ricky Burgess also loudly probed, “What would you like us to do then?”
They say a choice between accepting an offer that will leave them homeless and in debt, or paying for a new roof at a cost of £40,000 is no choice at all. It will leave them “trapped.”
Watch our debate footage – and the claims of “not another winter” – below.
‘Property owners are reminded to maintain their homes,’ Council adds
An Aberdeen City Council spokeswoman said: “We are unable to make comment on Elected Member statements. We can confirm that Aberdeen City Council is actively engaging with property owners to identify appropriate solutions to ongoing building safety concerns. Owners have been invited to share their preferences from a range of options currently under consideration.
“To support this process, the Council is offering owners the opportunity to have their property independently valued and to receive a formal offer, at no cost, should they wish to explore a voluntary sale.
“At the same time, we remind all property owners of their responsibility to maintain their buildings. Any potential enforcement action would be to protect the public in or about a building that constitutes a danger. This has been clearly communicated in recent correspondence and Building Standards continue to monitor the situation.”
- Read more from our Trapped by Raac campaign here.
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