Local MSP Brian Whittle is calling for the SNP to postpone their plans requiring homeowners to fit interlinked fire and smoke alarms in all houses by the 1st of February.
Brian’s call comes as Housing Secretary Shona Robison rejected calls from the Scottish Conservatives and others to delay the scheme amid concerns that many homeowners were unaware of the law and others were struggling to get the alarms fitted affordably.
The legislation was already postponed in October 2020 due to the pandemic, but SNP Ministers are now pressing ahead, despite many homeowners being unaware of the changes.
It means that in less than a fortnight, homeowners in South Scotland will have to have:
- one smoke alarm in the room they spend most of the day, usually the living room
- one smoke alarm in every circulation space on each storey, such as hallways and landings
- one heat alarm in the kitchen
While supportive of the plans to make homes safer, Brian says the SNP’s current start date is completely unachievable.
Brian Whittle MSP said:
“The SNP Government failed to properly plan how these changes would be delivered and then they failed to properly publicise them. Now despite all that, they’re pushing ahead with an unachievable date to bring this law into force.
SNP Ministers have admitted they don’t even know how many homes in South Scotland don’t currently meet these new requirements but they don’t seem to care.
Despite their claims that public awareness of the scheme is high, their own analysis shows many households are still unaware of the legislation at all, never mind what it will mean for them.
The SNP should recognise that the combination of the pandemic and their own failure to publicise this important change means that another delay is reasonable and necessary.
Homeowners don’t deserve to be caught out by these changes.”
