Chamber
Plenary, 09 Nov 2000
09 Nov 2000 · S1 · Plenary
Item of business
Homelessness
I thank the minister for her statement, which I understand is an extension of the announcement that was made in Glasgow in June. On behalf of the Opposition, I welcome the statement and the action that the Government is taking on street homelessness. If Parliament is to do anything, we must address rough sleeping and street homelessness. That will be a measure of success—whether of Parliament, the Executive or the committees.
Everybody in the chamber will have been shocked by the statistics that the minister outlined. I welcome the initiative in the report. There is also much to be welcomed in the statement, but I have some detailed questions that I would like answers to.
Will the minister confirm the current number of hostel beds and the pace at which they will be phased out? Will she also confirm the number of supported tenancies that will replace those hostel places and the cost of that? What arrangements have been made with Glasgow City Council and other agencies and when will moneys be released to those organisations?
I welcome the move to common assessments in Glasgow. After lessons have been learned from that, I hope that such a move will be extended to other areas.
The minister announced a further £12.5 million for Glasgow. Will that money be spent over the three years, as outlined? Will the minister confirm the source of that money? In evidence to the Social Inclusion, Housing and Voluntary Sector Committee, the minister talked about £20 million being reallocated from the new housing partnership budget to other headline subjects. Is the £12.5 million part of that? If not, will the minister say where that money comes from?
Everybody in the chamber will have been shocked by the statistics that the minister outlined. I welcome the initiative in the report. There is also much to be welcomed in the statement, but I have some detailed questions that I would like answers to.
Will the minister confirm the current number of hostel beds and the pace at which they will be phased out? Will she also confirm the number of supported tenancies that will replace those hostel places and the cost of that? What arrangements have been made with Glasgow City Council and other agencies and when will moneys be released to those organisations?
I welcome the move to common assessments in Glasgow. After lessons have been learned from that, I hope that such a move will be extended to other areas.
The minister announced a further £12.5 million for Glasgow. Will that money be spent over the three years, as outlined? Will the minister confirm the source of that money? In evidence to the Social Inclusion, Housing and Voluntary Sector Committee, the minister talked about £20 million being reallocated from the new housing partnership budget to other headline subjects. Is the £12.5 million part of that? If not, will the minister say where that money comes from?
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Sir David Steel):
NPA
Good morning. The first item of business this morning is a statement by Jackie Baillie on street homelessness in Glasgow. I am afraid that a copy of the spee...
The Minister for Social Justice (Jackie Baillie):
Lab
I am pleased to be able to bring before Parliament the report of the Glasgow street homelessness review team, which has been conducting a fundamental and str...
Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP):
SNP
I thank the minister for her statement, which I understand is an extension of the announcement that was made in Glasgow in June. On behalf of the Opposition,...
Jackie Baillie:
Lab
I thank Fiona Hyslop for her initial comments. It is important that Parliament concentrates its efforts on tackling homelessness and rough sleeping, which is...
Bill Aitken (Glasgow) (Con):
Con
The Conservatives offer a general welcome to the report and the proposals that it contains, as well as to the—if not glossy, very handsome—brochure that arri...
Jackie Baillie:
Lab
Bill Aitken is absolutely right to say that the Dickensian conditions that exist in Glasgow are no longer appropriate. We must do something about those condi...
Mr Frank McAveety (Glasgow Shettleston) (Lab):
Lab
I thank the minister for her statement, which echoed much of the work on street homelessness that was undertaken by the previous ministerial team.I wish to r...
Jackie Baillie:
Lab
I would welcome a meeting with Frank McAveety. He does not need to ask me formally for a meeting—I would meet him if he were to ask me informally.Frank McAve...
Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD):
LD
I apologise for arriving in the middle of the minister's statement—there were difficulties with my transport arrangements. On behalf of the Liberal Democrats...
Jackie Baillie:
Lab
I will clarify the figures. Provision of hostel beds in Glasgow stands at about 2,200, with an average 90 per cent occupancy rate. The overall number of peop...
Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP):
SNP
I also welcome the minister's statement. I particularly welcome her determination to tackle the fundamental structural problems that stand in the path of lon...
Jackie Baillie:
Lab
We acknowledge the acute problems that exist in Glasgow. However, I stress that overall unemployment levels have dropped substantially. Since 1997, when the ...
Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP):
SSP
I, too, apologise to the minister for being late and for missing a large part of her statement. Unfortunately—or otherwise—I shared a carriage with Mr Brown....
Jackie Baillie:
Lab
I should point out that, since Labour came to power, the number of children in poverty in Scotland has dropped by 70,000, which is welcome.I accept that the ...
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
I apologise to the members whom I have not called to speak. I gave priority to Glasgow members.