By Democrat reporter
Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie has called for the Scottish Government’s inaction on Scotland’s housing crisis to end as Labour’s budget pledged new cash for the sector.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ maiden budget saw £5 billion earmarked for housing, including the delivery of 1.5 million new homes in the first five years of government.
The chancellor also pledged the “largest real-terms funding settlement” for devolved government in 25 years, with a £3.4 billion sum allocated to boost Scotland’s public services.
It comes as West Dunbartonshire Council’s Housing Convener penned a letter to the Scottish Government, over a “ very disappointing” share of housing funding.
Councillor Gurpreet Singh Johal wrote to Minister for Housing Paul MacLennan, pointing out that the authority’s share of £80m Capital Funding over two years only stands at £309,000 for 2024/25.
Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie, WDC housing convener Councillor Gurpreet Singh Johal and Holyrood Housing Minister Paul MacLennan.
The formula agreed between the Scottish Government and umbrella body COSLA for distribution of funding also fails to take account of population or the scale of homelessness challenges facing councils.,
Data recently revealed that West Dunbartonshire has a higher rate of homeless households than anywhere else in Scotland.
Councillor Singh Johal had already pointed out at a meeting with the Scottish Government that previous funding allocations had failed to take account of the homelessness situation in the area.
The councillor also raised concerns over funding from the Scottish Government’s reduced Affordable Housing Supply programme and Temporary Accommodation Revenue.
Scottish Labour also forced a landmark debate on the state of Scotland’s social housing sector in Holyrood recently, outlining the SNP Government’s lack of insight into tackling the issue.
Leader Anas Sarwar tabled a motion in Holyrood prior to recess, branding the Scottish Government’s response as “absolutely woeful”.
West Dunbartonshire Council declared a housing emergency in May, becoming the fifth local council to do so, due to the pressures on housing stock.
Housing bosses revealed that more than 5,500 people were on waiting lists for social housing in West Dunbartonshire and declared that they had been forced to return to putting up families with children in B&B accommodation to help meet demand.
The neighbouring Argyll & Bute authority, which takes in Helensburgh, Cardross and Lomond, had earlier taken the decision to declare an emergency, in November 2023.
The Scottish Government finally declared a national housing emergency in May, after Scottish Labour forced a debate on the issue – after the Scottish Government voted against a similar call last November.
Holyrood heard that housebuilding has “fallen off a cliff” under the SNP and that the Scottish Government’s own Affordable Housing Supply Programme, which commits funding for new-build social housing developments, had seen completions drop by 14 per cent and starts fall by 10 per cent in the year until June 2024.
The Scottish Government has failed to meet its own affordable house-building target and figures show that housing association new-build numbers are at their lowest levels since Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative administration was in power.
Following the UK Labour Chancellor’s budget over £700million of capital funding will come to Scotland both for the remainder of this year and for 2025/26.
Jackie Baillie MSP, said: “Scotland is in the midst of the worst social housing crisis of my generation, yet the Scottish Government had to be forced to officially recognise this.
“Despite Scotland now officially having the worst levels of homelessness since Margaret Thatcher was in power, the Scottish Government has no plan to tackle this and no strategy to help the thousands of vulnerable people in crisis as a result.
“In my Dumbarton constituency, the single biggest issue I hear about on a daily basis is housing and the demand for socially rented homes.
“The Scottish Government has a woeful record on housing, housebuilding has slumped, they have missed their own targets and the Affordable Homes Supply budget has been slashed.
“No amount of spin and deflection can mask the facts, the SNP has not got a grip of the housing crisis, instead, they have fanned the flames and watched homelessness figures soar.
“With the additional money coming to Scotland from Labour’s UK budget, the SNP must get housebuilding going again.”