TOWER Hamlets council says it is cracking down on housing cheats.

Working with other social landlords, the council has launched a campaign to tackle people illegally sub-letting a council or housing association property and hop to put across the message that this could be depriving someone of a home that could rightfully be theirs.

The council’s risk management head Minesh Jani said: “We all know that housing is a particular issue for our borough. Tower Hamlets is only eight miles across and our population is one of the fastest growing in London.

“As a council, we’re working hard to get residents into appropriate housing and this is undermined when people act illegally to sub-let or occupy homes that might have been allocated to a family in need.”

The council, which bid for Government funding to tackle the problem, has established a new team to crack down on housing cheats.

Since starting work in May, the team has recovered sixteen properties for re-allocation. A further 22 are the subject of ‘Notice to Quit’ applications and 45 additional cases are being actively pursued for benefits issues.

Minesh added: “We’re calling on local people to help us in this campaign. You can contact us confidentially to tell us about properties you think might be illegally occupied and we’ll investigate to ensure they are allocated to the people who need them most.”

Call the council free on 0800 528 0294 or email anti-fraud@towerhamlets.gov.uk