Michael Gove has backed a regional daily’s bid for a change in the law following the death of a two-year-old on its patch.

The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has given his support to ‘Awaab’s Law’, proposed legislation put forward by the Manchester Evening News after a coroner ruled two-year-old Awaab Ishak died as a direct result of prolonged exposure to damp and mould.

The law would compel housing associations “not to allow any other child, or anyone else, to live in the uninhabitable conditions like the toddler suffered for so long” and give social landlords seven days to begin work to repair a property if a medical professional believes there is a risk to a tenant’s health.

Prior to the inquest’s conclusion, MEN journalist Stephen Topping uncovered a string of cases of children who had fallen seriously ill in similar housing conditions on Rochdale’s Freehold estate, where Awaab lived with his family prior to his death in December 2020.

Mr Gove’s backing for the campaign came during a visit to the Freehold estate, providing a splash for the MEN.  He has already cut off funding for the housing association which owned the flat.

He told the newspaper: “We’re bringing forward legislation – the social housing regulation bill – which will be holding all landlords to account and I talked to Awaab’s legal team about how we can make sure that legislation is as strong as possible so that Awaab’s memory is properly honoured.”

Mr Gove, himself a former journalist, added: “I have to praise the Manchester Evening News for shining a light on the condition of people who are living in homes that are not fit for human habitation.

“It’s been campaigning journalism by a great newspaper and Awaab’s Law has attracted, thanks to your championing and thanks to Awaab’s legal team, the support of tens of thousands of people.

“I’ve asked my team to look now at the specific recommendations of Awaab’s Law to see if we can bring it into force as soon as possible.

“You’ll appreciate that what we need to do, and I explained it to Awaab’s lawyers, is just make sure that the specific changes requested actually bring about the improvements that we all want to see.

“I’m not looking to delay, I just want to make sure that the spirit of Awaab’s Law and where possible the letter of Awaab’s Law is written into our statute book as quickly as possible. We’re looking at exactly how we can do that.

“As everyone knows, the process of law-making and drafting and so on, sometimes isn’t as quick as we would like it to be. But coming here today, talking to Awaab’s family and speaking to others who are in similar conditions, only reinforces the urgency of acting.”

More than 120,000 people have signed the MEN’s petition calling for the introduction of Awaab’s Law since the campaign was launched earlier this month.

HTFP has approached the MEN for a comment.