A LANDLORD who received public cash to house asylum seekers in her properties has been struck off after tens of thousands of pounds were seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Under new moves to 'name and shame' landlords whose fitness to operate has come to the attention of Scotland's biggest local authority, Fiona McCabe has been banned from letting properties, seven months after being hit with a £75,000 confiscation order for selling counterfeit tobacco.
The 50-year-old told a hearing at Glasgow City Council that all but one of her 11 properties were let via the organisation tasked with housing asylum seekers.
When asked about her tenants, Ms McCabe told the councillors that just one of her 11 properties was let by herself, while others housed asylum seekers via Orchard and Shipman.
The Home Office outsources the contract for asylum accommodation in Glasgow to multi-national services company Serco which then sub-contracts to the property management firm.
Earlier this year Orchard and Shipman were at the centre of a number of investigations into the treatment of asylum seekers in Glasgow amid claims they were being housed in in dirty and dangerous homes and had felt threatened and humiliated.
At the same hearing the owner of a letting agency jailed for causing death by dangerous driving of two pensioners following a blackout he said was brought on by Viagra was permitted to retain his licence.
Vincent Friel, who is appealing his three year sentence and whose firm employs 20 people, continues as a landlord following a split vote and the committee's chairman, Labour;s Frank Docherty, declaring an interest.
Another landlord, James Hunter, who owns four city properties, also deemed 'fit and proper' despite a background report including jail sentences for the separate abductions of two females and later the supply of cocaine, as well as being admonished for attempted murder.
The details of the cases emerged after the city council changed how to reviews landlords, moving it from the hands of officials and into public hearings with councillors given the decision on whether they are struck off or not.
If a landlord is removed they are not permitted to collect rent yet tenants continue to have the rights as per their tenancy agreement.
The move comes after reports vulnerable families were being exploited by rogue landlords and living in substandard homes in Glasgow's Govanhill area.
The BBC also claimed to have found a number of de-registered landlords who continued to work in the area despite being officially struck off.
At Wednesday's hearing councillors heard how a test purchase by officials from Glasgow City Council's trading standards unit led to the seizure of 255 items from Ms McCabe's stall at Blochairn market.
Ms McCabe, who also runs a property maintenance firm, later admitted selling fake tobacco and was sentenced to a 260-hour community payback order.
She told the committee how she had been pursued originally for £300,000 and that she was unaware she had to declare the probe.
A spokesman for the firm said: "We are aware of the case and the hearing today. We are checking to see which if any of her properties we are using and if necessary we will move anyone who is currently in them to other accommodation."
A city spokesman said: “The Landlord Registration scheme is a means to monitor those who rent out property and to ensure they are fit and proper to do the job.
“The vast majority of landlords take their responsibilities seriously and there are no concerns about their suitability for the role.
“However, where we find evidence of criminality or a failure to manage property appropriately, we will seek to take action.
“Revising the system so that the licensing committee takes the final decision on a landlord’s registration ensures transparency and fairness.”
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