Military couple Paul and Angela Wilson say their house at the former RAF base in Leuchars is so damp it is affecting their health and that of their daughter Lauren,

Anger at homes being let while others are affected by damp

The Ministry of Defence has been accused of profiteering by privately letting out military homes in Fife.

Cupar councillor Karen Marjoram criticised the MoD for letting out surplus properties in the town and at Leuchars at market rates.

The move follows reports of damp and infestation in soldiers’ homes, highlighted recently by North East Fife SNP MP Stephen Gethins.

One military couple living in a house with mould on the walls said they were told there was nowhere else for them to go.

However, MoD properties are being advertised privately, with one twobedroom home on the market for £550 a month.

Mother of two Angela Wilson, whose husband Paul is a corporal based at RAF Lossiemouth, said her Leuchars home had been riddled with damp for the past three years and her family’s health had suffered.

“The damp has affected every room in the house,” said Mrs Wilson, 44.

“It’s over the bed and everything. The bed has gone a yellowy colour and there are black spores on the walls.

“It’s disgusting.

“We’ve always got the cold or a chest infection. When my daughter does PE at school she says she gets breathless.”

Mrs Wilson stayed on in Leuchars after her husband, 43, was moved to Lossiemouth because her elder daughter was studying locally.

“He’s fed up,” she said. “Every time he comes back to Leuchars he says you can smell it straight away.”

The couple claim they cannot move from the home because they have been told there is no alternative accommodation and they cannot give a notice to quit while Mr Wilson is still serving.

Ms Marjoram, an SNP councillor for Cupar, said families such as the Wilsons should be given priority over private renters.

“The armed forces are going to make a profit out of this,” she said.

“That’s the ridiculous thing. Military families are getting told there is nowhere to move them, when there clearly is.

“They own these houses but are saying they are not available. It’s profiteering.”

She added that there was a wider issue, with a shortfall in social housing across the area.

Another option, she said, could have been handing the homes over for use as affordable housing.

“All 49 of the Kingdom Housing homes in Pitscottie Road have been allocated already and they’ve not finished getting them built yet,” she said.

The Ministry of Defence were contacted for comment but did not respond before going to print.

We’ve always got the cold or a chest infection. When my daughter does PE at school she says she gets breathless. ANGELA WILSON

above. Picture: Kris Miller.

Picture: Kris Miller. Lauren Wilson in her family’s damp military home in Leuchars. Her mother Angela is angry that they are stuck in a damp home while the MoD is renting out others nearby.