Wendy Murray was forced from her home by the council due to an adjoining building being deemed dangerous – and was told to move into a hotel where nine drug users died.
Wendy Murray was forcibly removed from her flat at Stevenson St, Calton – and is now homeless, while racking up council tax and mortgage bills
A woman who was forcibly evacuated from her home has been offered accommodation at a notorious hotel where nine people died of drug overdoses.
Lawyers for Wendy Murray, 58, are now seeking to force Glasgow City Council to provide her a decent home.
The Daily Record told last week how Wendy was forced out of the flat she owns on Stevenson Street, Glasgow, after an adjoining building was condemned as dangerous.
Now she has told how the council wanted her to stay in the notorious Alexander Thomson Hotel in Glasgow city centre.
Wendy said: “The hotel they have offered is totally unsuitable for a woman of my age. From what I have read, the Alexander Thomson Hotel seems unsuitable for anyone, as nine people died there during lockdown.
“I’m not prepared to stay there and I have instructed a lawyer to seek something more appropriate.
”I’ve been thrown out of my own home and I have absolutely no idea who is going to do any repairs or how long it will take. I am at my wits’ end.”
Alexander Thomson Hotel – Argyle Street, Glasgow.
Wendy was one of nine residents who were forced to move after a derelict pub was found to contain structural pillars that had rusted to a dangerous state.
The situation has put focus on Glasgow City Council’s role, amid claims that they are not doing enough to help citizens who are thrown into crisis through no fault of their own.
A letter from Wendy’s solicitor to Glasgow City Council states that the council has a duty to rehome Wendy under the Homeless Persons (Unsuitable Accommodation) (Scotland) Order 2014 – which has already been breached thousands of times by the council.
The letter states: “Ms Murray is a vulnerable older woman, who has lived in her property without interruption for many years.
“Having had to suddenly move out of her home through no fault of her own has had a tremendous impact on her physical and mental health.
“To expect Ms Murray to enter a hotel accommodation which is largely populated by single males in an area far from her home and support network would be wholly unreasonable.
“We understand she has presented as homeless to GCC and has been offered accommodation at the Alexander Greek Thomson Hotel.”
Glasgow City Council says officers are trying to trace the owner of the old John’s Bar building – ne repair work has started
The letter from the Govan Law Centre threatens to seek a judicial review if suitable accommodation is not found.
The cases of Wendy and people like her is hugely hampered by Scotland’s ongoing homelessness crisis.
Glasgow has also seen a huge influx of asylum seekers, which the council had a duty to find homes for.
But the shortage of new homes being built in recent years has failed miserably to keep up with demand, leading to many families living in temporary homes and “homeless hotels” being offered to people experiencing drug addiction.
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Nine people died at the Alexander Thomson Hotel during lockdown in 2020.
Despite the scandal of the deaths, social care chiefs gave a “shocking” clean bill of health to the hotel – saying it was keeping vulnerable people “safe and secure”.
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: “We have given or offered all the support – including emergency accommodation – to affected residents that is currently in our power.
“Owners are responsible for their properties, and it should be understood that residents are only ever evacuated as a last resort when the building they are living in is considered too dangerous.”