Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 06 October 2011
06 Oct 2011 · S4 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Housing
I have heard that explanation from the minister before and I am sure that he remembers that we have had this exchange before. The problem is that the practice does not reflect his interpretation. Within local authorities, there is a reluctance to apply the more controversial elements of the law when the opportunity is presented to do so. As a consequence, the actions that are taken on the ground do not reflect the definition that the minister has just given. We need to ensure that that is achieved in the future.
Let us move on to some of our ideas. The lack of supply for both rent and low-cost home ownership is a problem that we must address. However, the planning system is one of the blocks to that and is strangling developments. The opportunity for development is being denied by planning permission not being granted in many circumstances. The minister must consider what needs to be done to remove that blockage in the planning system.
Registered social landlord unit subsidy costs are high, so they need to be more realistic. The days of high subsidies are gone and everyone needs to accept the new funding landscape. Many RSLs do not fit the efficiency agenda that is being pursued north and south of the border. As a consequence, we need to consider whether they can be brought into larger units, perhaps reflecting regional identity within the larger groupings. We need to ensure that rents are affordable and not just for benefit claimants. Further, the standardisation of development, design, costs and build techniques will help to squeeze more out of the same pot.
The public sector has assets that are little used. Can we release them and ensure that that money is used to work more effectively in joint ventures with the private sector? Why not release the public sector from the shackles of secure tenancy and allow it to make the money work more effectively? Can we review property holdings to ensure that, where feasible, empty properties are forced back on to the market? We know what we have heard from the Government about taxing unoccupied houses, but why not incentivise properties back into use by more flexible financing and tenancy packages?
We could propose much more and will take the opportunity to do so as we go along, but we have a problem to address today. It would be remiss of me not to take the opportunity again to ask the minister to consider abolishing home reports before they cripple the market completely.
I move amendment S4M-01022.2, to leave out from “recognises” to end and insert:
“is concerned that housebuilding in Scotland has slumped to its lowest level in almost 30 years while the number of house sales is 10% lower than last year; is further concerned that, against this background, the Scottish Government has chosen to cut spending in housing and regeneration by 30%, with a 40% cut in the Supporting Economic Growth/Housing Supply budget line, and therefore calls on the Scottish Government to take action to free up the planning system to boost the construction industry and to scrap home reports to boost house sales.”
Let us move on to some of our ideas. The lack of supply for both rent and low-cost home ownership is a problem that we must address. However, the planning system is one of the blocks to that and is strangling developments. The opportunity for development is being denied by planning permission not being granted in many circumstances. The minister must consider what needs to be done to remove that blockage in the planning system.
Registered social landlord unit subsidy costs are high, so they need to be more realistic. The days of high subsidies are gone and everyone needs to accept the new funding landscape. Many RSLs do not fit the efficiency agenda that is being pursued north and south of the border. As a consequence, we need to consider whether they can be brought into larger units, perhaps reflecting regional identity within the larger groupings. We need to ensure that rents are affordable and not just for benefit claimants. Further, the standardisation of development, design, costs and build techniques will help to squeeze more out of the same pot.
The public sector has assets that are little used. Can we release them and ensure that that money is used to work more effectively in joint ventures with the private sector? Why not release the public sector from the shackles of secure tenancy and allow it to make the money work more effectively? Can we review property holdings to ensure that, where feasible, empty properties are forced back on to the market? We know what we have heard from the Government about taxing unoccupied houses, but why not incentivise properties back into use by more flexible financing and tenancy packages?
We could propose much more and will take the opportunity to do so as we go along, but we have a problem to address today. It would be remiss of me not to take the opportunity again to ask the minister to consider abolishing home reports before they cripple the market completely.
I move amendment S4M-01022.2, to leave out from “recognises” to end and insert:
“is concerned that housebuilding in Scotland has slumped to its lowest level in almost 30 years while the number of house sales is 10% lower than last year; is further concerned that, against this background, the Scottish Government has chosen to cut spending in housing and regeneration by 30%, with a 40% cut in the Supporting Economic Growth/Housing Supply budget line, and therefore calls on the Scottish Government to take action to free up the planning system to boost the construction industry and to scrap home reports to boost house sales.”
References in this contribution
Motions, questions or amendments mentioned by their reference code.
- S4M-01022.2 Housing Motion
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Tricia Marwick)
NPA
The first item of business is a debate on motion S4M-01022, in the name of Keith Brown, on housing.09:15
The Minister for Housing and Transport (Keith Brown)
SNP
I am delighted to lead this debate on housing, which is my first such debate as Minister for Housing and Transport. I intend to use the debate to point out a...
Hugh Henry (Renfrewshire South) (Lab)
Lab
Will the minister confirm his party’s manifesto pledge to deliver 6,000 homes for social rent per year? Will that target be met?
Keith Brown
SNP
As I have said previously in the Parliament, and as the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth has said to the Parliament and in co...
Malcolm Chisholm (Edinburgh Northern and Leith) (Lab)
Lab
Does the minister find it acceptable that the supply of social rented homes is plummeting, whereas he is talking about the broader definition of affordable h...
Keith Brown
SNP
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 t...
Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green)
Green
Will the minister acknowledge that, although he referred to “progressive increases” in the building standards for new stock, we have not seen progressive inc...
Keith Brown
SNP
Those points were well covered yesterday in the statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment. Our programme is progressive an...
The Presiding Officer
NPA
Before I call Lewis Macdonald, I point out to members that we are going to be extremely generous with time. Feel free to take interventions; if you do, I wil...
Lewis Macdonald (North East Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
Thank you very much, Presiding Officer. Your generosity is, as always, much appreciated.When John Swinney introduced the draft budget and spending review a c...
John Mason (Glasgow Shettleston) (SNP)
SNP
Will the member give us a suggestion for some other capital programme that should not go ahead in order to fund housing, such as the Forth road bridge?
Lewis Macdonald
Lab
If John Mason is suggesting that the Government cuts the Forth road bridge in order to fund housing, perhaps he needs to take that up with his own front benc...
The Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment (Alex Neil)
SNP
You should just have phoned me.
Lewis Macdonald
Lab
I could have phoned Mr Neil and I suspect that, if I had, I might have got a more direct answer than we have had so far in parliamentary debates. Perhaps tha...
Malcolm Chisholm
Lab
Does Lewis Macdonald agree that the situation is even worse? When he replied to me earlier, Keith Brown said that the commitment was now to build 4,000 socia...
Lewis Macdonald
Lab
That intervention goes to the nub of the argument. It is one thing to say, “We are providing funding to build new houses,” but, if the provision of that fund...
Keith Brown
SNP
Will the member give way?
The Presiding Officer
NPA
Briefly, please.
Keith Brown
SNP
First, I point out that Shelter asked for around £610 million in the budget and just over £600 million is being provided.Lewis Macdonald said that he will be...
Lewis Macdonald
Lab
It is a fair question. Indeed, I put it to ministers. If they are listening to the housing sector, they know themselves—Interruption. Publishing a manifesto ...
The Presiding Officer
NPA
I call Alex Johnstone to speak to and move amendment S4M-01022.2. I will be generous with you, too, Mr Johnstone, if you take interventions. 09:39
Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con)
Con
Thank you very much, Presiding Officer. In fact, the generosity that you have shown in this and previous debates indicates that the wise thing for us all to ...
Alex Neil
SNP
Will the member break the habit of a lifetime and suggest an innovative and creative measure that we are not taking?
Alex Johnstone
Con
We will get on to that. The innovation and investment fund has encouraged RSLs to do the Government’s job for it, and local authorities are now borrowing mon...
Keith Brown
SNP
On that last point, will the member acknowledge that our shared equity initiatives do exactly that by freeing up housing stock that can be used by other peop...
Alex Johnstone
Con
This is a time when we all have to find ways to make money go as far as possible, which means that some of us have to think the unthinkable. I would just lik...
Alex Neil
SNP
I need to correct the member on that point. We have made it absolutely clear that anyone who is evicted because they have been using drugs in a council or RS...
Alex Johnstone
Con
I have heard that explanation from the minister before and I am sure that he remembers that we have had this exchange before. The problem is that the practic...
The Presiding Officer
NPA
We move to the open debate. My generosity is not boundless, but it still exists. Mr MacKenzie, you have about six minutes.09:49
Mike MacKenzie (Highlands and Islands) (SNP)
SNP
I declare an interest and ask the Parliament to note my entry in the register of members’ interests.It is a great privilege to speak in the debate, because I...