Hansard

I am not sure that I agree with the premise of the question that the supply of socially affordable houses is plummeting. I have just said that at least two thirds of the 30,000 houses that we intend to have over the next five years will be social rented housing. That is vastly in excess of the figures that previous Administrations delivered. The supply of those houses is not plummeting. The supply of affordable homes is increasing, it remains our top priority and it is a vital part of our efforts. I have no doubt that we will deliver our target to have 30,000 affordable homes completed by the end of this session.

To come back to the other part of Malcolm Chisholm’s question, despite the cuts in capital spend for housing, we have prioritised more than £600 million for new housing over the period in question. That commitment enabled me to announce a doubling of investment in new affordable homes through the investment and innovation fund. The £111 million that we are committing through that fund will lever in more than £283 million in additional investment. Combining that money with the equivalent provision through Glasgow City Council and the City of Edinburgh Council will deliver 4,310 new affordable homes, more than 70 per cent of which will be for social rent.

Many people doubted housing associations’ ability and capacity to deliver that kind of housing at £40,000 grant per unit, but the sector has risen magnificently to the challenge, and has drawn on its ability to tap into new sources of funding. Local authorities in Scotland are now building almost as many council houses as the rest of the UK combined, and private developers are taking advantage of guarantees offered through the national housing trust and our support for shared equity, which are providing lifelines for construction businesses throughout Scotland and homes that Scotland needs.

I underline the point that, as a result of the drastic cut in the capital budget, we are forgoing employing more people who would pay taxes rather than receive benefits. Investing now in capital in housing and transport means creating economic assets for the future at a cost that will be hard to replicate when the economy picks up again. This is the time to invest in capital.

Our record is there for all to see. Under the four years of the first Scottish National Party Government, more than 27,000 affordable homes were completed. That is a third more than the four-year total under the previous Administration. More than 19,000 of our total of 27,000 affordable homes were for social rent. As we look ahead, we are confident that, together with our partners in the housing sector, we have the ideas, capacity and commitment to keep Scotland building.

Obviously, investment in new supply dominates the discussion about housing, but we also need to make better use of existing homes. We have already said that we will look to limit further the right to buy to preserve social housing stock, and we will soon consult on proposals to allow councils to charge a council tax levy on long-term empty properties. Empty properties are a wasted resource. We aim to introduce legislation next year to allow councils to charge the levy from April 2013 to help to provide more revenue for them to use for affordable housing. The levy will also help to reduce homelessness by releasing more houses as owners rent or sell their empty properties. Our focus on alleviating the causes of homelessness stands in stark contrast to the actions of the UK Government and its swingeing housing benefit cuts, which—make no bones about it—will force people out of their existing homes. I have made my concerns about the reforms crystal clear to UK ministers, as the cabinet secretary has on a number of occasions.

Prevention and planning are important in preparing for the challenge of an older population. The Government supports older people’s aspirations to live independently in their own homes for as long as possible, but significant demographic and financial challenges mean that we must find new ways to achieve those aspirations. I plan to publish a national strategy for housing for older people in December that will set out a clear vision for housing for older people and what needs to be put in place to achieve it.

With the challenge of reducing greenhouse gases and the rise in energy prices, it is essential that we build houses to the highest standards of energy efficiency. Progressive increases in our rigorous building standards are ensuring that new houses will be near zero carbon but, with the expectation that more than 80 per cent of current housing will still be in existence by 2050, improvements to the existing stock are also vital.

We are tackling fuel poverty head on with an increase of more than 30 per cent in funding to support fuel poverty and energy efficiency programmes.