Erosion is taking its toll on some buildings

The British Geological Survey believes about one in 10 sandstone buildings could be affected.

The situation has left some people in Edinburgh facing bills for essential repairs of more than �45,000.

Councils in cities like Edinburgh and Dundee will carry out repairs, but there are no grants to assist with the costs incurred by the owners.

Thousands of flats across Scotland are built from sandstone, although the vast majority are constructed from high quality materials.

It slowly sinks in and you think 'where am I going to get the money from?' Jimmy Wallace Homeowner

"Something like 90% of our historic building stock is probably in very good condition because it is built from very high quality stone," said Mr Hyslop.

"But a minority, perhaps 10% maybe, was built from poorer quality stone, which today, after up to 200 years of weathering in our climate, is beginning to decay."

Jimmy Wallace lives in a tenement building on the corner of Leamington Terrace and Leamington Place in Edinburgh which is facing major repairs.

Safety fears

Just before Christmas the owners in his block of flats received a bill for about �46,800 each.

Mr Wallace said he was in a total state of shock for a few days.

"It slowly sinks in and you think 'where am I going to get the money from?'" he said.

Edinburgh City Council said the repair programmes were designed to ensure the safety of buildings and anyone passing nearby.

Councillor Brian Fallon, executive member for property management, said: "Obviously this is a large piece of work which needs to be done, and while we realise the difficulty for the owners, public safety must always be the paramount concern.

Property owners have a responsibility to ensure their buildings are in a safe condition Cllr Brian Fallon Edinburgh City Council

"Property owners have a responsibility to ensure their buildings are in a safe condition."

An Australian waitress was killed three years ago by falling masonry at a pavement cafe in the city.

Dundee City Council is also currently involved in an initiative to ensure that buildings are in a safe condition.

It estimates that it still has about 1,000 tenement buildings in the city.

A council spokesman said: "A public safety rating value will be applied to all properties and those which fall into a high-risk category will be inspected from ground level and owners contacted to request more detailed inspections and repairs within a set timescale.

"If owners fail to respond to the council, the city engineer will undertake the detailed survey and any safety works necessary - and all costs will be charged to the owners.