Introduction

When I first wrote about what was happening in Dundee, and the proposed demolition of council housing blocks that have dominated the city's skyline for almost 40 years, house prices were rising – though never as fast as in more fashionable places – and developers still had an unsatisfied appetite for land. That is the background of the first part of my story. But by the time I presented my work as part of the seminar series on which this book is based, the economy had turned, and even politicians seemed to be waking up to the importance of social housing (both council and housing association). I was able to end my talk on two small sources of hope for Dundee: that it was not too late to stop some of the worst of the planned destruction of council housing; and that the forthcoming council by-election would bring a change of administration and just possibly a greater willingness to rethink past decisions. On 30 March 2009, Dundee got a Scottish National Party (SNP) council in place of a New Labour-dominated coalition, and the new housing convenor responded to tenant pressure and the changed economic circumstances by agreeing to reconsider the demolition programme. The second part of this story looks at the last ditch campaign to save the blocks against the background of the post-crash economic crisis. I had hoped that the third part would give this story a happy ending, but the day after I completed the first draft of this chapter we learned that, despite all our campaigns and arguments, the council was going to proceed with the demolitions. We can now only try and ensure the buildings are well maintained to the end, and tenants are offered reasonable alternative accommodation – and that this story is told so that others can learn what is happening to social housing and be better equipped to fight for its survival. We will be spared the latest attacks on social housing being planned by the Conservative-Liberal Democrat Coalition Government in Westminster, but Scotland's hegemonic neoliberal consensus is far from accepting defeat.

The era of ‘regeneration’: selling the city

I began working with Dundee council tenants angered by the potential demolition of their homes in 2004, when the demolitions were first proposed.