SNP pledge to expand council housing across region

Only the SNP have plans to protect and enhance council housing in Renfrewshire, claims SNP Councillor Kenny MacLaren.

He is standing for election in Paisley Northwest.

Kenny said it was an SNP administration with Brian Lawson as Convener of Housing who persuaded the then SNP Scottish Government to find the extra funding to allow the council to bring all its housing up to the Scottish Housing Quality

Standard in 2007.

Prior to that election, the then Labour administration had decided to sell off all council housing and it was only a last-minute campaign by SNP and housing activists including Kenny MacLaren which led to the tenants refusing Labour’s sell-off plans.

Since then, council housing in Renfrewshire has been on a firmer footing and the current SNP-led administration has invested heavily in not only maintaining the current housing stock but also building the first council housing in Renfrewshire in years.

This includes 101 council houses in Ferguslie, 95 homes in Johnstone Castle, 80 in Bishopton, 39 in Auchengreoch Road in Johnstone and a further 100 homes between Gallowhill and Foxbar.

Further funding has been invested in improving energy efficiency and ensuring all council housing meets the new fire alarm standard.

It has recently been announced a further £100million is to be spent on eight areas in Renfrewshire on housing regeneration and renewal, with around 300 more new council homes being completed.

Councillor Kenny MacLaren said:“It was the SNP – with the support of tenants – who saved council housing in Renfrewshire. We defied Labour’s policy of selling off all the council housing and instead lobbied the Scottish Government to ensure we had the finances to upgrade our housing stock.

“But we didn’t stop there, we continued to invest in our housing stock, aiming to meet higher energy efficiency standards and now look to regenerate eight initial areas with £100million investment.”