Refugees highlight Scotland’s housing shortage
Who cannot be moved by the images – burning homes, long lines of refugees and, worst of all, pictures of civilian dead – coming out of Ukraine?
To add to our sorrow and anger is a feeling of absolute helplessness. Instinctively we want “our boys” to be sent in to help the Ukrainians in their plight but at the same time know this risks war between Nato and Russia, the prospect of a nuclear conflagration and the possible end of civilisation as we know it.
So, apart from sending weapons, money, medical supplies, clothing and children’s toys, Great Britain has offered sanctuary to refugees fleeing Ukraine. However, Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, has been criticised as being too slow in facilitating this.
According to Nicola Sturgeon, there should be no limit to the number of Ukrainian refugees admitted to the UK, which may sound laudable but belies the practical difficulties of admitting thousands of people without any means of housing them.
With more than 130,000 families on the waiting list for a council house in Scotland, where is our First Minister going to put all these refugees, if they are not to be housed for an indefinite period in Army-type barracks?
The latest figures for new housebuilding in the social sector (in the quarter to end March 2021) show 1513 completions. While this was an increase of 19 per cent (246 homes) on the previous quarter (October to December 2020), it was a decrease of 22 per cent (415 homes) on 1928 completions in the previous January to March.
This brings the total number of social sector completions for the 12 months to end March 2021 to 3785, a decrease of 33 per cent (1887 homes) on the 5672 made available in the previous year. While activity levels were affected by Covid lockdown measures, the
fact remains that pre-pandemic annual building figures were under 6000, a figure that in no way relates to underlying demand.
The problem is that Scotland is woefully short of accommodation. The latest Scottish Government data from 2019 shows there are 132,029 on a waiting list for social housing. Meanwhile the private rented sector is facing an unprecedented shortage of housing stock which nobody has experienced before. As I write, my own firm, for example, has just 64 properties available at a time of the year when we would normally have hundreds. In addition, we are expecting an enormous influx of EU citizens returning to work in Scotland this summer and we will struggle to house them if there is not a substantial upturn in properties available.
If refugees cannot all be accommodated in social housing and the Scottish Government feels it has no alternative but to take leases on rental property to sublet to Ukrainians, then the demand, coupled with the lack of supply, will inevitably push up the cost of rentals for everyone.
The problem, as it has been for some time, is too few properties available to rent and insufficient numbers being built to meet the needs of the Scottish population. Only by having a frank and open discussion among all interested parties will we resolve this issue long term.
The Scottish Government needs to engage fully with housebuilders and property developers, the private rented sector and social housing in developing an appropriate strategy.
David Alexander is managing director of DJ Alexander