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Scottish government boosts empty homes budget following £196m housebuilding cut
The Scottish government has announced an extra £80m over two years to buy empty homes for social housing, months after it cut its affordable housebuilding programme by £196m.
With first minister Humza Yousaf reportedly set to resign later today (Monday 29 April), Inside Housing understands the commitment is not going to be scrapped or changed within any sort of timescale that would put the news out of date.
The new funding was announced by Mr Yousaf on a visit to a Hillcrest Housing Association development in Dundee.
It came after a dramatic week in which the outgoing first minister sacked zero-carbon buildings minister Patrick Harvie on Thursday and ended the Scottish National Party’s coalition with the Green Party to run Scotland as a minority government.
The extra £40m for 2024-25 will increase this year’s budget for the Affordable Housing Supply Programme to nearly £600m, which remains well below the £752m it was allocated for 2023-24.
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Mr Yousaf said the money would build on the well-received National Acquisition Programme he announced last year, which spent £60m and delivered 1,000 affordable homes.
He added that he would “accelerate” discussions with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities around getting void council properties back into use.
The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) welcomed the funding, but pointed out that it “will not build a single new social home”.
Sally Thomas, chief executive of the SFHA, was “pleased” to see the first minister “at least considering the issue of housing”, but “what we need are the funds to build”.
She said: “With freefall in supply, this funding announcement pales in comparison to what we’ve lost and unfortunately represents little more than a sticking plaster during a national housing emergency.”
Figures published last month showed the number of new homes being started by housing associations last year was the lowest it has been since 1988.
Callum Chomczuk, national director of the Chartered Institute of Housing Scotland, said the extra cash “does not go far enough”.
He said: “Scotland is in a housing emergency, with housing and homeless services at breaking point across the county and we need a clear plan from the government in how to address this.
“The most recent Budget took £200m out of this year’s affordable housing supply budget and that was before we had confirmation last month that affordable housing approvals and starts are at a 10-year low.
“We need the upcoming review of the Affordable Housing Supply Programme, [which] will provide clarity over how we fund the social and affordable homes Scotland needs.”
