Nicola Barclay, Homes for Scotland Chief Executive, calls for ‘bold action’ to tackle the housing shortage in Scotland.
200 Senior Representatives from the homebuilding industry, Registered Social Landlords, local authorities, and other housing stakeholder groups met in Edinburgh recently to consider what can be done to address Scotland’s housing crisis.
At the event, Nicola Barclay, Homes for Scotland Chief Executive, issued a rallying call to the whole of the housing sector. She said: “The economic downturn obviously had a massive impact on housing delivery, but the cold hard truth is that numbers continue to bump along the bottom, with completion figures for 2016 falling to 16,953 from 17,090 the previous year.
“For the sake of this, and future generations, we simply have to get on top of this problem. Politicians from all parties must take the long view as well as recognise the bold action that is required to make a difference – the current planning review being a case in point.”
Although the Scottish Government outlined the need for 35,000 new homes to be built across the country a decade ago, the current figures are still only reaching less than half of this objective.
Angela Constance, Cabinet Secretary for Communities, Social Security and Equalities, said: “Good quality, warm and affordable homes are vital to support and create jobs, and ensure a Scotland that is fairer and more prosperous. That is why we have committed to deliver at least 50,000 affordable homes by the end of this Parliament, backed by £3 billion investment.
“Since 2007, we have delivered a record 69,000 affordable homes, and our previous five-year target of delivering 30,000 affordable homes was exceeded. While our current target is ambitious, I am confident it can be achieved, working closely with all those with a role to play in delivering it, including Homes for Scotland.”
The meeting took place on the tenth anniversary of the Scottish Government’s Firm Foundations discussion document.
