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Daily Record
8 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Record
People Make Glasgow tower refurb sparks row over need for affordable homes during city housing crisis
EXCLUSIVE: Shelter warned the housing emergency in Scotland's largest city was getting worse due to a chronic lack of affordable accomodation. Campaigners against homelessness have warned Glasgow needs more affordable homes and not more "luxury apartments" after it was announced a city landmark is to get a high-end makeover. The Met Tower overlooking George Square - well-known for its giant "People Make Glasgow" advert - will be converted into a "union co-living" space by developers Vita. The firm claims the plan will support "a new community of city centre professionals" and boost the local economy. The listed building, which has lain empty for a decade, was originally opened in 1964 as the Stow College of Building. But its sell-off to private developers has been questioned by Shelter Scotland, who said the tower was "once a symbol of education and community". It comes at a time Scotland is in the grips of a national housing emergency with multiple local authorities, including Glasgow, unable to meet demand for affordable accommodation. More than 3,000 households in the city are currently stuck in temporary homes, including B&Bs, as they wait for a suitable property to become available. Alison Watson, Shelter Scotland director, told the Record: "The situation in Glasgow has continued to deteriorate since it declared a housing emergency in 2023. What we need is more social homes — not luxury apartments with trendy bars. "With 3,000 households stuck in temporary accommodation, the priority must be delivering affordable social housing that people can actually afford to live in. 'Tackling the housing emergency has to be at the top of the local authority's agenda. But with such a severe shortage, the council cannot solve this crisis alone — it needs serious backing from both the Scottish and UK Governments. 'Everyone deserves a safe, secure and affordable place to call home. 'That's why we need bold, radical action: more investment from the Scottish Government in social housing, the purchase of larger homes for larger families, and stronger commitment from the UK Government must all be part of the plan.' Vita is the developer also behind the controversial proposal to turn the site of the former ABC venue on Sauchiehall Street into a food hall and student flats. Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken welcomed the new Met Tower development, calling it a clear vote of confidence in the future of city centre living. "Vita's plans will bring what is an emerging accommodation concept to Glasgow, one that's been successful elsewhere and which can meet the needs of many younger residents," she said. "When it first opened in the early 1960s, the Met Tower was a symbol of a new and modern Glasgow. I look forward to it once again becoming a potent symbol of our changing city centre."
Edinburgh Reporter
08-08-2025
- Politics
- Edinburgh Reporter
Edinburgh Council faces an ‘impossible task' on homelessness without more support
Edinburgh Council faces an 'impossible task' on homelessness without more government support, a major housing charity has warned. Councillors are set to vote next week on whether to suspend the allocations of council houses in almost all cases until March 2027. A suspension has been in place since April, which has seen virtually all available council houses directed towards people and households presenting as homeless. Shelter Scotland said the proposal 'reflects the scale of the crisis' that has been brought on by underinvestment in housing. And two Edinburgh MPs have said the council faces a wide range of pressures in handling the crisis. Even with the extension, a council report estimated 517 households per night will still be in unsuitable accommodation in March 2027. Shelter said the city needed to do more to supply temporary and permanent homes. The city's housing crisis has been worsened in recent months by a need to move homeless households out of unlicensed HMOs, a policy started during Covid. A report before councillors at next week's meeting of the Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee presented an option of suspending housing allocations to March 2026. However, officers said that this would leave over 800 families in unsuitable accommodation every night. Shelter Scotland director Alison Watson said: 'The City of Edinburgh Council is facing an impossible task without enough homes or resources. 'The situation has not emerged overnight; it is the result of decades of underinvestment in social housing and a failure to provide councils with the tools they need to fulfil their legal duties. 'The decision to suspend the normal letting policy reflects the scale of the crisis and the urgent need to protect the 3,691 children currently stuck in temporary accommodation, as well as to prevent rising levels of rough sleeping. 'However, with the council forecasting that it will still be breaking unsuitable accommodation laws 517 times every night at the end of this suspension, it is clear the council needs to do more to deliver suitable temporary and permanent homes. 'No council should have lawbreaking on this scale as part of its long-term plans. That's why all levels of government, including Scottish and UK, must provide the resources and investment to deliver the social homes our capital city desperately needs.' Edinburgh South MP and Scottish Secretary Ian Murray said that the issues Edinburgh faces are long running, and come down to the issue of supply and demand. He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: 'We've been talking about this for two decades. It's a supply and demand issue. 'It's an issue with Scotland and major parts of the UK, where populations have been growing, and the supply of housing has not kept up with that demand. 'The council has to decide what they want the city to be, and how they reply to that. 'If you ask the University of Edinburgh, they would say they need more student accommodation. 'If you ask the Fringe, they'd say you need more temporary accommodation, particularly in peak tourist times within the city. If you were asking the airport, they want more hotel beds. 'It depends on who you're asking the question to. The bottom line is that Edinburgh has a huge supply problem, and the biggest part of that problem is affordable housing.' He also said that the council had little power to change the situation, and that they were 'doing what they can do' in the situation they are in. And Edinburgh East MP Chris Murray commented that the city needs to see less student accommodation and top-market new builds, and more accessibly priced flats. He said: 'Fundamentally, every issue in Edinburgh goes back to population growth. It's a good problem to have, the population of the city went up 15% in 10 years. 'That's because we're dynamic and we've got a great future. But we are not building houses. 'We're basically only building student accommodation, and very big new build homes at the top of the market at any scale. 'We're not building new flats, family housing. And also, rents are really out of control. Rent controls sound good – but they do not work. 'Edinburgh has had the fastest rent increases in Europe because they do not work. We just need to build more homes.' Green councillor Ben Parker said: 'Edinburgh Greens won't be backing the recommendation to extend the suspension of housing allocations until 2027. 'Of course, the council must do more to tackle the homelessness crisis, but this can't come at the expense of council tenants to whom we also have a duty of care. 'Troublingly, the committee report does not make clear the impact this decision would have on existing tenants, and that's something we hear about from people right across the city, day to day. 'Whether it's families trapped in overcrowded homes or people who have been waiting on Council housing waiting lists for decades, we cannot allow them to be seen as collateral damage in our wider approach to tackle the housing emergency. 'We are also deeply disappointed by the lack of engagement with the third sector and other partners by the Council in managing the suspension of allocations so far. 'For years, Greens have been pushing for a radical overhaul of the way that we fund the housing system in Edinburgh, and I'm pleased that we will be discussing some of these possible solutions during the same committee meeting.' Edinburgh Council was contacted for comment. Councillors will make a final decision on whether to extend the housing allocations policy at the next meeting of the Housing, Homelessness, and Fair Work committee on August 12. By Joseph Sullivan Local Democracy Reporter Like this: Like Related
Scotsman
08-08-2025
- Politics
- Scotsman
Edinburgh faces 'impossible task' in tackling homelessness, says Shelter
Edinburgh Council faces an 'impossible task' on homelessness without more government support, a major housing charity has warned. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Councillors are set to vote next week on whether to suspend the allocations of council houses in almost all cases until March 2027. A suspension has been in place since April, which has seen virtually all available council houses directed towards people and households presenting as homeless. Shelter Scotland says the council faces an impossible task Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Shelter Scotland said the proposal 'reflects the scale of the crisis' that has been brought on by underinvestment in housing. And two Edinburgh MPs have said the council faces a wide range of pressures in handling the crisis. Even with the extension, a council report estimated 517 households per night will still be in unsuitable accommodation in March 2027. Shelter said the city needed to do more to supply temporary and permanent homes. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The city's housing crisis has been worsened in recent months by a need to move homeless households out of unlicensed HMOs, a policy started during Covid. A report before councillors at next week's meeting of the Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee presented an option of suspending housing allocations to March 2026. However, officers said that this would leave over 800 families in unsuitable accommodation every night. Shelter Scotland director Alison Watson said: 'Edinburgh Council is facing an impossible task without enough homes or resources. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'The situation has not emerged overnight; it is the result of decades of underinvestment in social housing and a failure to provide councils with the tools they need to fulfil their legal duties. 'The decision to suspend the normal letting policy reflects the scale of the crisis and the urgent need to protect the 3,691 children currently stuck in temporary accommodation, as well as to prevent rising levels of rough sleeping. 'However, with the council forecasting that it will still be breaking unsuitable accommodation laws 517 times every night at the end of this suspension, it is clear the council needs to do more to deliver suitable temporary and permanent homes. 'No council should have lawbreaking on this scale as part of its long-term plans. That's why all levels of government, including Scottish and UK, must provide the resources and investment to deliver the social homes our capital city desperately needs.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Edinburgh South MP and Scottish Secretary Ian Murray said that the issues Edinburgh faces are long running, and come down to the issue of supply and demand. He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: 'We've been talking about this for two decades. It's a supply and demand issue. 'It's an issue with Scotland and major parts of the UK, where populations have been growing, and the supply of housing has not kept up with that demand. 'The council has to decide what they want the city to be, and how they reply to that. If you ask the University of Edinburgh, they would say they need more student accommodation. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'If you ask the Fringe, they'd say you need more temporary accommodation, particularly in peak tourist times within the city. If you were asking the airport, they want more hotel beds. 'It depends on who you're asking the question to. The bottom line is that Edinburgh has a huge supply problem, and the biggest part of that problem is affordable housing.' He also said that the council had little power to change the situation, and that they were 'doing what they can do' in the situation they are in. And Edinburgh East MP Chris Murray commented that the city needs to see less student accommodation and top-market new builds, and more accessibly priced flats. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad He said: 'Fundamentally, every issue in Edinburgh goes back to population growth. It's a good problem to have, the population of the city went up 15% in 10 years. 'That's because we're dynamic and we've got a great future. But we are not building houses. 'We're basically only building student accommodation, and very big new build homes at the top of the market at any scale. 'We're not building new flats, family housing. And also, rents are really out of control. Rent controls sound good – but they do not work. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Edinburgh has had the fastest rent increases in Europe because they do not work. We just need to build more homes.' Green councillor Ben Parker said: 'Edinburgh Greens won't be the recommendation to extend the suspension of housing allocations until 2027. 'Of course, the council must do more to tackle the homelessness crisis, but this can't come at the expense of council tenants to whom we also have a duty of care. 'Troublingly, the committee report does not make clear the impact this decision would have on existing tenants, and that's something we hear about from people right across the city, day to day. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Whether it's families trapped in overcrowded homes or people who have been waiting on Council housing waiting lists for decades, we cannot allow them to be seen as collateral damage in our wider approach to tackle the housing emergency. 'We are also deeply disappointed by the lack of engagement with the third sector and other partners by the Council in managing the suspension of allocations so far. 'For years, Greens have been pushing for a radical overhaul of the way that we fund the housing system in Edinburgh, and I'm pleased that we will be discussing some of these possible solutions during the same committee meeting.' Edinburgh Council was contacted for comment. Councillors will make a final decision on whether to extend the housing allocations policy at the next meeting of the Housing, Homelessness, and Fair Work committee on August 12.
The Herald Scotland
02-08-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Edinburgh's £53m homeless bill revealed amid housing crisis
Between May 2024 and May 20 25, the council provided 7,909 households with short-term housing. In total, 14,545 individuals were accommodated for a minimum of one night. During the same time frame, the council provided homeless individuals with 2,112 permanent homes. The figures have been revealed as the Edinburgh Fringe kicks off, which brings thousands of tourists and performers to the city, leading to increased accommodation scarcity. The local authority had declared a housing emergency in 2023, amid rising homelessness figures and increasing rental costs. Alison Watson is the director of Shelter Scotland. (Image: Phil Wilkinson.) Speaking to The Herald, Shelter Scotland Director Alison Watson said: "Shelter Scotland welcomes the council's decision to invest in temporary accommodation rather than push more people onto the streets. But the sheer scale of these figures lays bare the grim reality of [[Edinburgh]]'s housing emergency. "With prevention services being cut, more people are being forced into the homelessness system. And with a chronic shortage of social housing to provide people with safe, secure and affordable homes, the City of Edinburgh Council faces an impossible task without serious support from both the Scottish and UK governments.' Jane Devine, CEO of Four Square, an Edinburgh based supported accommodation charity, said the local authority is doing a lot of work to keep people off the streets. She told The Herald: 'Our services have been at full occupancy over the last 12 months, all 65 beds are full.' Four Square, which operates accommodation for 16-25 year-olds and women fleeing domestic violence, was originally set up in 1982. Devine said: 'We have a lot of care leavers who use our services. Even though we cater for 16-25 year-olds, most people are under the age of 20. 'Most people won't need supported temporary accommodation, but young people and women fleeing domestic abuse often require additional assistance. 'The council's decision to extend our contacts on a ten year basis has been a game changer, and has allowed us to expand our services. The city council has been very helpful.' The number of homeless people living in Edinburgh has reached 14,000. (Image: Stock) Fellow charity Crisis Skylight has also spoken out about the 'extraordinary pressure' placed on homelessness services in the city. Mark Kennedy, the charity's director, told The Herald: 'We see the impact that has through our frontline services in Edinburgh every day – people often forced to live without access to cooking and laundry facilities, or unable to see friends and family because of curfews, and children struggling to maintain school attendance because of the disruption homelessness brings with it. 'We need urgent action from local and national government to bring these figures down. That means moving people out of temporary accommodation and into settled homes, so they can move on with their lives, and changing the law so those at risk of homelessness can get help earlier and never get forced into these circumstances in the first place.' Ms Watson of Shelter Scotland echoed these claims, noting: "We need bold, radical action: greater investment from the Scottish Government in social housing, the purchase of larger homes for larger families, and stronger backing from the UK Government must all be part of the solution. "Fixing this is hard, but doing too little is what got us here. Scotland's housing system is broken and biased. It didn't happen overnight, and there are no quick fixes. This is a direct result of political choices and repeated budget cuts. Politicians of all stripes must now step up and choose to end the housing emergency." Glasgow City Council spent twice as much as its Edinburgh counterpart. (Image: PA) Meanwhile, data illustrating the scope of the housing crisis in Glasgow was published earlier this month. In mid-July, [[The Herald]] revealed that Glasgow City Council spent £106m on temporary accommodation in 2024, providing housing for 9,140 homeless individuals. However, despite their statutory obligations, the local authority turned away 753 people seeking accommodation between 1 May and 1 June, according to figures obtained by the Scottish Tenants' Organisation. South Lanarkshire Council spent £11,300,464 on securing temporary accommodation in 2024/25, while Falkirk Council paid out £3,169,412 during the same timeframe, and Perth and Kinross Council spent £1,863,906 between May 2024 and May 2025. Similar sums were spent by Highland Council (£1,938,125.66 in 2024) and Renfrewshire Council (£913,377), while Aberdeen City Council paid out £12,897,608 to provide temporary and permanent housing between January and December 2024. Read more: 'A grim reality': Glasgow City Council spent £106m to house homeless last year Edinburgh Fringe period 'time for dread' for homeless people in the city Alison Watson: August is not a time for celebration. It is a time for dread In a statement, City of Edinburgh councillor Lezley Cameron said the local authority was working 'closely' with charities and the Scottish Government to combat the housing crisis. Ms Cameron, who convenes the council's Housing, Homelessness, and Fair Work committee, told [[The Herald]]: 'Scotland's national housing crisis manifests most acutely in [[Edinburgh]], due to crippling supply and demand pressures, the high costs of housing here, and the Council continuing to receive the highest number of people and families in Scotland presenting as homeless.' Ms Cameron added: 'A huge amount of work by our council officers, by the third sector and our partners is being done to help break the cycle of recurring homelessness. "The service is delivering an improved homeless prevention programme for residents at risk of becoming homeless. Since December 2023, these have helped over 3,500 households to remain in permanent homes. 'Meantime, we are working closely with our partners and the Scottish Government to explore and establish new and viable solutions to resolving Edinburgh's housing crisis whilst remaining committed to doing all we can within the constraints of inadequate funding.'
The Herald Scotland
25-05-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Scottish housing emergency one year on: 'There is no credible plan'
In the last 12 months, homelessness has risen. Social housebuilding has fallen. Our study with YouGov found 2.3 million adults struggling with the condition, security, suitability, or affordability of their home, or facing discrimination when trying to find one. Behind these statistics are families living in fear. Children growing up without space, safety, or dignity. All while John Swinney vows to end child poverty. But child poverty cannot be tackled without ending child homelessness. And the latest Programme for Government fails to offer either a plan or the investment to do so. It is now clear: there is no credible plan to deliver 110,000 homes and no serious effort to cut the number of households stuck in temporary accommodation. We need a Programme for Housing. What we got was a Programme for Homelessness. Read more on Scotland's Housing Emergency: Despite systemic failures in homelessness services across Scotland, there is no commitment to ramp up social housebuilding, no expanded budget, and no real investment in services to prevent more people falling into homelessness. Politicians are failing in their duty. They look away as wave after wave of families fall through the cracks. We know what it means for families to live in overcrowded, unsafe homes - to be unable to host a friend, to live in fear, to be isolated. We now have evidence of the profound harm this does to children's development and mental health, casting a shadow long into their future. We don't need more excuses. We need a Housing Emergency Action Plan - with clear, concrete targets, proper funding, and a genuine commitment to affordable, secure, permanent homes. Not a plan that shuffles people from one crisis to another. As the Scottish General Election approaches, every political party has a choice to make continue treating housing as a second-tier issue or rise to the challenge and put it where it belongs - at the centre of the agenda. Voters have power, too. We can demand more. We can ask the hard questions. We can refuse to accept that this is the best Scotland can do. Because everyone deserves more than just a roof over their head. Everyone deserves safety, stability, peace. It has been a year. If our politicians won't treat the housing emergency like the emergency it is, then we must. It is time to say: enough is enough. If those in power won't act, then it's up to all of us to speak out, stand up, and fight for the right to a home. Alison Watson is a director at Shelter Scotland.
