Residents who live in the Moredun and Muirhouse areas of the city told the BBC’s Disclosure programme they are being left to deal with severe cases of mould and damp in their homes, which are let by the local authority.

Council leader Cammy Day admitted that the failures are “unacceptable” but added that the cases are in the minority.

He told the BBC: “I think these are not the majority of cases.

“There’s thousands of repairs done to council homes every day and week across the city and they’re primarily done right, let’s accept that point.

“The ones that have just slipped the gaps are unacceptable and I put my hands up, that is unacceptable.”

According to the city council’s guidelines, the standard time for repair within council houses should be up to 48 hours for emergency repairs and no more than a few weeks for minor fixes.

Many tenants in Muirhouse and Moredun told BBC Disclosure they were struggling to receive communication from the council when they reported a problem.

Council leader Cammy Day added: “If there is anyone waiting more than four weeks for a repair to be done then they should contact me as a leader of this council immediately, and I’ll make sure that it’s fixed.

“For me, there is a change needed in the timescale that we deal with people.”

The film: Is My Flat Safe? is available on iPlayer.