8. Tom Clay [then LHAT Director of Development and Planning] gave some details of the alleged structural defects of OMH to a meeting of the committee of The Wavertree Society on 5 July 2001. Some of his statements are given below with my comments.

(a) The brick panels are moving and dangerous at any moment.
The buildings do not have brick panels but are brick-clad for their entire height. There is no sign of movement. The Council carried out major works to the brickwork in the mid-1980s including extensive pinning of the brick cladding to the reinforced concrete structure. The brickwork was cleaned and pointed and is in excellent order. There are no signs of shifting or instability.

(b) The cast-iron soil stacks are reduced in thickness from 4 mm to 1 mm and cannot be pressure cleaned in case they break.
Cast-iron pipes have a life of up to a century. I have inspected and tapped the soil stacks and found no sign of weakness. (Even if the stacks needed replacement this is a routine maintenance task)

(c) The window frames are rotten.
I have not seen any rotten window frames. The Council repaired windows, including some replacements, during its mid-1980s repairs.

9. Opinion of a OMH tenant:
I worked for the Council for 45 years in painting and decorating and became a foreman painter ... I was
made up when I knew I was coming here. I knew the block was in good nick. You don' t have to be an architect to see that. I can't see why they're pulling down any of the blocks. It is an unnecessary load of crap.

10. "Like most of the local authority built towers in Liverpool, the built fabric of the blocks has deteriorated over a number of years, and management and repairs to an acceptable standard has become more expensive and problematical". [PS 3.2]

There is research evidence to support these assertions. Tom Clay told The Wavertree Society:

'The cost of refurbishment would be £70,000 per flat and they are not worth this much.'

The original estimate for the HAT was around £20,200 per flat in 1992. HAT very quickly boosted this to £100,000 per unit before lowering it to £70,000. A modest programme of refitting bathrooms and kitchens, rewiring, renewal of heating systems, windows and doors is all that is required and this would not reach anywhere near £70,000.

continued . . .