Brits told to climb down

As residents of Meabh House at the New Lodge flats in Belfast intensify their demands for the British army to vacate their base on top of the tower block, Sinn Féin's Gerry Brophy has called for residents to be rehoused, leaving the soldiers in the tower by themselves. Brophy's comments followed the release of a new health report by the Health and Environmental Services department of Belfast city council last week which condemned the tower block as unfit. According to the report, the vast majority of problems associated with the tower are due to the British army's occupation. The health officer found extensive dampness and condensation caused by ventilation problems. The report also found that rain penetration of the building is likely to be the result of heavy military equipment damaging the roof covering. The British military will not allow the Housing Executive access to the roof in order to carry out the necessary repairs.

North Belfast Sinn Féin councillor Gerard Brophy vented the residents' anger. ``Who owns these flats? The residents of the tower pay rent to the Housing Executive but the Housing Executive claims that the British Army will not allow them access to the roof to carry out repairs. We must now ask who are the real landlords?''