Council tenants cultivating cannabis face crackdown

The local authority has announced it will be “stepping up action” under the 1996 Housing Act, in relation to the cultivation and production of the Class B drug, as well as its distribution.

Steve Parry, neighbourhood crime and justice manager for Rotherham Council, said: “Unfortunately, the cultivation of cannabis seems to be on the increase but we warn anyone thinking about growing it – either in council properties or privately – that we will take the necessary legal action to stop it.

“If tenants ignore this warning they will find themselves paying significant court costs, facing jail and losing their homes.”

Since the beginning of 2010, more than 40 council tenants in Rotherham have been served with anti-social behaviour injunctions and Notices of Seeking Possession (NSP’s) – the first step towards eviction proceedings – after they were found to be growing or distributing cannabis from their homes.

Tenants are now being warned that they face repossession proceedings and the potential loss of their council houses if they are found to be growing cannabis .

Breaching an anti-social behaviour injunction can also lead to contempt of court proceedings, which could carry a jail term as well as heavy legal costs.

In those cases where there has been a “substantial” amount of cannabis discovered, Rotherham Council has applied for possession of the properties.

So far, eight tenants have been evicted and a further dozen have been issued with suspended possession orders.

Paul Walsh, Rotherham Council’s housing and communities manager, said: “The council will continue to work with South Yorkshire Police and our partner agencies to tackle anti-social behaviour and crime within our neighbourhoods.

“People should feel safe where they live and we will be working hard to achieve that.

“The vast majority of our tenants are law abiding citizens and abide by their tenancy obligations.

“Increasingly, action will be taken against those who are not.”

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