Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 18 November 2015
18 Nov 2015 · S4 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
House Building Programme
Ah, right to buy—one of those little totems that this Government waves occasionally. The truth is that right to buy had withered on the vine and very few people were using it. Of those who were using it, as many as 70 per cent had been tenants since before the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001, so if they were not allowed to buy their properties, they would simply have remained tenants. I doubt whether more than a handful of homes have been freed up for the social rented sector as a result of this Government ending the right to buy, which was simply a distraction to prevent us from noticing that the Government was failing to build homes.
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (John Scott)
Con
The next item of business is a debate on motion S4M-14859, in the name of Margaret Burgess, on an ambitious house building programme for Scotland. I call the...
The Minister for Housing and Welfare (Margaret Burgess)
SNP
The Scottish Government is clear in its recognition of the critical role that housing plays in promoting social justice, strengthening communities and tackli...
Jim Hume (South Scotland) (LD)
LD
The minister mentioned the Government’s social rented homes target. However, in her manifesto, which includes a picture of a certain Alex Neil and—some membe...
Margaret Burgess
SNP
The member is like a broken gramophone record—he raises that issue all the time. Since 2011, we have made it very clear that our target was for 30,000 afford...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
Con
Let the minister be heard, please.
Margaret Burgess
SNP
I am delighted to tell the chamber today that the Scottish Government has now not only met but exceeded its target to deliver 30,000 affordable homes. That i...
Ken Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab)
Lab
The minister is clearly very pleased that she has met the target, but has she met housing need?
Margaret Burgess
SNP
I certainly think that we have met housing need better than the previous Administration did. It built fewer houses with rising budgets, while we have met the...
Paul Martin (Glasgow Provan) (Lab)
Lab
Will the minister give way?
Margaret Burgess
SNP
I want to make progress—I want members to hear about our ambitious housing programme. That is a 67 per cent planned increase in affordable housing supply an...
Gavin Brown (Lothian) (Con)
Con
When will the successor to the help-to-buy scheme become operational?
Margaret Burgess
SNP
I will answer that shortly. We have announced continuing support for a more targeted affordable help-to-buy scheme and we are working with the industry to d...
Gavin Brown
Con
Will the minister give way?
Margaret Burgess
SNP
Not at the moment. I ask the member to let me continue, as I want to make progress. That is why we are taking through the Parliament the Private Housing (Te...
Liam McArthur (Orkney Islands) (LD)
LD
The minister will be aware of the concerns in the islands that I represent about the fact that standard assessment procedure provisions do not allow mains el...
Margaret Burgess
SNP
We have already had numbers of conversations with the island communities and the Minister for Transport and Islands about how we address fuel poverty and the...
Michael McMahon (Uddingston and Bellshill) (Lab)
Lab
I begin with a plea to the Government. I welcome the fact that it has scheduled this debate on the important issue of housing, but will it finally recognise ...
Mike MacKenzie (Highlands and Islands) (SNP)
SNP
Will the member take an intervention?
Michael McMahon
Lab
If Mike MacKenzie wants to confirm that that is the case, I would be happy to take an intervention.
Mike MacKenzie
SNP
Does the member agree that if it is the case that there is a housing crisis, the blame for that rests squarely on the shoulders of one Gordon Brown, who prom...
Michael McMahon
Lab
That is number 3 on the grievance list, I think. I am surprised that Mike MacKenzie went so far down to find his target, but we will have to accept that Gord...
John Mason (Glasgow Shettleston) (SNP)
SNP
Will the member give way?
Michael McMahon
Lab
I will make some progress, if the member does not mind. It is an unavoidable truth that we need more affordable homes than the Scottish Government has built...
John Mason
SNP
I do not think that anybody is really arguing with the member’s description of the need, but does he have any solutions? Would he like to switch money out of...
Michael McMahon
Lab
That intervention shows the lack of depth of understanding of the problem. The issues are health issues, which spending on housing will improve. If we wan...
Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con)
Con
I will begin where the previous speaker left off. There is complacency written right through the Scottish Government’s motion. It says at the outset “That t...
Kevin Stewart (Aberdeen Central) (SNP)
SNP
Will Mr Johnstone give way?
Alex Johnstone
Con
Indeed, why not?
Kevin Stewart
SNP
I do not think that the Government has ever said that it is paying for every single council house that is being built. However, this Government’s policy has ...
Alex Johnstone
Con
Ah, right to buy—one of those little totems that this Government waves occasionally. The truth is that right to buy had withered on the vine and very few peo...