‘Worst possible decision at worst possible time’

Proposals to cut social housing budgets represent “the worst possible decision at the worst possible time” and are a “hammerblow” to reducing poverty, a coalition of housing and anti-poverty bodies have said.

The open letter to Humza Yousaf says safe, warm, affordable housing is a basic human right and that the draft budget is a “hammer-blow” to the First Minister’s mission for Scotland to be a country of equality, opportunity and community for everyone.

It urged the Scottish Government to “reverse” the “devastating decisions” it had made and prioritise resources to deliver more social housing.

SFHA chief executive Sally Thomas said: “Parliament this week will decide whether to approve the Scottish Government’s budget – a budget that proposes to slash the money available to build social homes by more than a quarter.

“Almost one in 20 people in Scotland are on a waiting list for a social home, 30,000 are homeless and nearly 10,000 children are growing up in temporary accommodation.

“We just aren’t building the homes that Scotland needs.

“The budget proposals represent the worst possible decision at the worst possible time and are a hammer-blow to the First Minister’s priority of reducing poverty.”

Homes For Scotland chief executive Jane Wood said chronic undersupply of housing in Scotland was “intensifying”.

She added: “As we consistently highlight, private and affordable housing delivery are interconnected.

“With 30% of affordable housing generated by the private sector through developer contributions, the more homes for sale that can be built, the more affordable homes will be delivered as a result."