Government urged to create action plan one year after housing emergency declared
A Holyrood committee has urged the Government to create a national action plan to address the housing emergency.
MSPs voted to declare a housing emergency one year ago, following on from a similar move by local councils as homelessness reached record levels.
An inquiry by the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee found the housing emergency was 'years, even decades in the making and was therefore both predictable and preventable', according to convener Ariane Burgess.
As of September 30 last year, 16,634 households were living in temporary accommodation, including 10,360 children, with both figures the highest on record.
Figures for 2024 also show that the number of homes built dropped by 7%, while new homes started by construction firms fell by 9%.
The committee's report urges ministers to create a plan and work across all Government departments to tackle the issue.
'The committee recommends that the Scottish Government develop a national overarching housing emergency action plan by the end of this session of Parliament in collaboration with the wider housing sector,' the report said.
'This should include clear milestones and outcomes to enable progress to be measured.
'A whole-systems approach is required that is led by the Scottish Government and its partners in order to stabilise housing in Scotland and help prevent future emergencies.
'The committee therefore recommends that the Scottish Government sets out how it will better coalesce its own departments around tackling housing need and ensure that wider policies across different portfolios can have a positive impact.'
Ahead of the anniversary of the declaration, Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville touted the Government's action in the past year and its plans for the future, including spending £768 million on affordable housing, funding local councils, and investing £2 million in the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership to free up unused housing stock.
The committee also urged the Government to confirm how the increase in housing spending this year, around £200m from last year, will impact its target of building 110,000 affordable homes by 2032.
Ms Somerville said: 'Providing everyone in Scotland the right to a warm, safe and affordable home is essential to our key priority of eradicating child poverty.
'The measures we have taken have meant increased investment in the affordable housing sector and fewer families living in temporary accommodation.
'As a result of our actions, an estimated more than 2,600 households with children have been helped into affordable housing in the year up to December 2024.
'We have delivered 136,000 affordable homes, with 97,000 of those for social rent, between 2007 and the end of December 2024.
'We are also working to identify and turn around empty private and social homes and encouraging more funding streams into the sector through our housing investment taskforce.
'It is encouraging that we are seeing a reduction in families in temporary accommodation in some local authority areas.
'However, we know there is more to do, which is why we have increased the affordable housing budget for this financial year by £200m to £768m. In the longer term, we will also introduce homelessness prevention measures and a system of long-term rent controls in our Housing (Scotland) Bill.
'We are determined to tackle the housing emergency and ensure that everyone in Scotland can have somewhere to call home.'
Scottish Labour housing spokesman Mark Griffin described the Government as 'arrogant and out of touch', adding: 'Since the SNP was forced to declare a housing emergency a year ago, housebuilding has plummeted, the number of children in temporary accommodation has risen to a record high, and rent and house prices have continued to climb.
'The SNP's Programme for Government has been described as a 'programme for homelessness' and its incompetent housing minister is still in a job.
'The SNP's desperate spin won't wash with the people who are living through the dire consequences of this housing emergency.'
Scottish Conservative housing spokeswoman Meghan Gallacher said: 'This stark report makes it clear the SNP have been missing in action since finally agreeing a housing emergency was occurring on their watch.
'They have continued to recklessly support rent controls, which do not work, and have continued to ask cash-strapped councils to do more with less as they try to meet local demand for housing.
'With a record number of children in temporary accommodation and housebuilding collapsing across Scotland, the SNP Government needs to wake up.
'They should mark this anniversary by accepting that current housing policies are failing, ditch plans for permanent rent controls, and instead encourage much-needed investment into our flagging housing sector.'
Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
37 minutes ago
- Reuters
India's granaries overflow as rice stocks hit record, wheat surges
MUMBAI, June 11 (Reuters) - India's rice stocks in government warehouses rose 18% from a year ago to a record high for the start of June, while wheat stocks have hit their highest level in four years on higher procurement from farmers, official data showed on Wednesday. Record rice stocks will help the world's biggest exporter increase shipments, while an improvement in wheat inventories will help the federal government tame any price spikes later this year by increasing open market sales. State reserves of rice, including unmilled paddy, totalled a record 59.5 million metric tons as of June 1, far exceeding the government's target of 13.5 million tons for July 1. Wheat stocks stood at 36.9 million tons on June 1, well above the government's target of 27.6 million tons, the data showed. "Rice stocks have piled up way too much. The government really needs to bring them down before the next buying season kicks off in October," said a New Delhi-based dealer at a global trading firm. India, which accounts for around 40% of global rice exports, removed the last of its export curbs on the grain in March 2025, with the initial restrictions having been imposed in 2022. Wheat stocks have risen to a comfortable position mainly because of higher procurement, which will help New Delhi sell more wheat to bulk consumers during the lean supply season, said a Mumbai-based dealer. The government has so far brought 30 million tons of wheat from farmers, the most in four years, according to data compiled by Food Corporation of India (FCI). Disappointing harvests in the past three years and lower purchases by the FCI had pushed up prices of the staple grain and raised expectations that India may be forced to import wheat for the first time in seven years. But the buildup in stocks this year means the country should be able to meet domestic demand without imports.
Telegraph
39 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Householders who racially abuse police at home to face prosecution
People who racially abuse police making house calls will be prosecuted under plans to close a legal loophole. Offenders will face up to two years in jail if they are found guilty of directing religious or racial abuse at emergency service workers who enter their homes. The Public Order Act of 1986 made it illegal to racially or religiously abuse anyone in public but did not cover behaviour within a private home. The legislation was designed to let police keep public spaces free from abuse but not overstep into conversations held in private. But the Home Office said this left police and other emergency workers vulnerable and unprotected from racial and religious harassment during house calls, and meant they could not bring perpetrators to account. Home Office officials said ministers had decided to close the loophole because of an increase in reports of emergency workers being abused for their race or religion while in private homes. 'They should not have to tolerate abuse' A Home Office spokesman said: 'By closing the loophole in the Public Order Act 1986, the Government is making clear that racially or religiously motivated abuse and threats towards our emergency workers will never be tolerated, regardless of where it takes place.' Dame Diana Johnson, the policing minister, said: 'Our emergency workers put themselves in harm's way every day to keep us safe and they should never have to tolerate abuse due to their race or religion while simply doing their job. 'By closing this loophole, we're sending a clear message that racial and religious abuse directed towards those who serve our communities will not be tolerated.' The changes will be introduced through amendments to Labour's Crime and Policing Bill, which will also extend police powers to enter homes to seize knives and mobile phones. At present, the law only allows officers to seize blades that are on the banned list, such as 'zombie' knives and machetes, and ministers said police were hamstrung when they raided suspects' homes. They are not allowed to take weapons such as kitchen knives, which are not on the list, even if they suspect they will be used in crimes. Police will also be able to enter homes and search for stolen mobile phones without a warrant, if the devices have been electronically tracked to that location. Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, said the law change would enable emergency workers to save lives free from violence or intimidation. 'Anyone who violates this core principle brings shame on themselves and will feel the full force of the law, wherever they are,' he said. 'I will not stand any health worker being subjected to abuse and take a zero-tolerance approach, and these new measures will crack down on perpetrators.'
The Herald Scotland
40 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
John Swinney to hold modest Scottish cabinet reshuffle
It is understood the reshuffle will be modest to accommodate for the return of Mairi McAllan, who has been on maternity leave - but there could be a few other changes as Mr Swinney looks to the Scottish Parliament election in 2026. Ms McAllan's as Net Zero and Energy were covered by Gillian Martin, with Alasdair Allan stepping in as acting minister for climate action. Read more: Ms McAllan gave birth to her son Somhairle in August and was expected to make a full ministerial return in July, the Scottish Government confirmed. Senior ministers, including Finance Secretary Shona Robison and Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop confirmed they will stand down next year, leading to suggestions Mr Swinney may want to refresh the cabinet in time for the election. The reshuffle comes on the same day as Chancellor Rachel Reeves sets out her spending review, which could have significant financial implications for the Scottish Government. But it also comes after The Herald revealed senior figures in the SNP held a secret meeting on Monday to discuss ousting Mr Swinney as party leader following last week's by-election defeat. Rebels warns of a 'bloodbath' at conference if there was no movement on independence from senior leadership. The Herald will keep you up to date as SNP MSPs enter the First Minister's official residence over the course of the day. More to follow...
