Fine for licence breach

AN Edinburgh landlord has been fined £1000 for operating a house of multiple occupation without a licence.

Mark Fortune, 42, of Essex Brae was found guilty after trial at the city's Sheriff Court yesterday of allowing five people to live in a flat in Gillespie Crescent.

The flat was visited by council officials on February 9 last year. Enforcement officers from the houses of multiple occupation section said there was no licence for the premises. Mr Fortune produced a letter from the council, dated February 11, acknowledging receipt of an application from him for a licence. He said he had sent it days before the visit.

Sheriff Frank Crowe said he was satisfied that the house was in multiple occupation for some time before the application was lodged, adding: "I think this was more than an oversight".