Chamber
Plenary, 22 Feb 2007
22 Feb 2007 · S2 · Plenary
Item of business
Affordable Housing
I confess to being astonished that the housing minister could present a debate on the Government's record in housing and could speak for 11 minutes without mentioning the Executive's flagship policy—wholesale stock transfer. Is wholesale stock transfer now the flagship policy that must not speak its name?
There have been five housing ministers since 1999—Wendy Alexander, Jackie Baillie, Margaret Curran, Malcolm Chisholm and now Rhona Brankin. They come; they go. Ms Brankin is likely to have the shortest tenure of them all.
The first line of the motion asks the Parliament to welcome
"the importance that the Scottish Executive has placed on ensuring the provision of affordable housing".
Did I blink and miss something over the past eight years of the Government? Is the minister not listening to the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Shelter Scotland, the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations or the Chartered Institute of Housing in Scotland? Is she not listening to councillors the length and breadth of Scotland? Is she not listening to her own back benchers and has she not read the Bramley report, which was commissioned by her immediate predecessor, Malcolm Chisholm, on the shortage of affordable homes in Scotland? Is the minister unique? Is she the only one among the 129 MSPs who does not see people desperate for housing at her surgeries? Young people and families are desperate for houses of their own or to leave behind overcrowded and damp conditions.
It does not matter where we go in Scotland, the story is the same: in rural communities, cities and small towns, there is a desperate shortage of decent, affordable accommodation. The Scottish National Party amendment is a reality check for the Government, which is so obsessed by spin and so desperate to pretend that all is well that it is in serious danger of undermining any good work that it has done, such as the homestake scheme to help first-time-buyers to get on to the property ladder or the raft of desperately needed housing legislation that it has passed.
Let us examine the record of the Government's delivery on housing. The policy of wholesale stock transfer, which I have mentioned—although the minister did not—has failed. There has never been a plan B in place for when tenants say no, but the Government's greatest failure—no wonder she will not talk about it—is its failure to keep the promises that were made to the Glasgow tenants, who voted yes in the ballot in the belief that, as the Government told them, second-stage transfer to small-scale community housing associations would take place.
There have been five housing ministers since 1999—Wendy Alexander, Jackie Baillie, Margaret Curran, Malcolm Chisholm and now Rhona Brankin. They come; they go. Ms Brankin is likely to have the shortest tenure of them all.
The first line of the motion asks the Parliament to welcome
"the importance that the Scottish Executive has placed on ensuring the provision of affordable housing".
Did I blink and miss something over the past eight years of the Government? Is the minister not listening to the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Shelter Scotland, the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations or the Chartered Institute of Housing in Scotland? Is she not listening to councillors the length and breadth of Scotland? Is she not listening to her own back benchers and has she not read the Bramley report, which was commissioned by her immediate predecessor, Malcolm Chisholm, on the shortage of affordable homes in Scotland? Is the minister unique? Is she the only one among the 129 MSPs who does not see people desperate for housing at her surgeries? Young people and families are desperate for houses of their own or to leave behind overcrowded and damp conditions.
It does not matter where we go in Scotland, the story is the same: in rural communities, cities and small towns, there is a desperate shortage of decent, affordable accommodation. The Scottish National Party amendment is a reality check for the Government, which is so obsessed by spin and so desperate to pretend that all is well that it is in serious danger of undermining any good work that it has done, such as the homestake scheme to help first-time-buyers to get on to the property ladder or the raft of desperately needed housing legislation that it has passed.
Let us examine the record of the Government's delivery on housing. The policy of wholesale stock transfer, which I have mentioned—although the minister did not—has failed. There has never been a plan B in place for when tenants say no, but the Government's greatest failure—no wonder she will not talk about it—is its failure to keep the promises that were made to the Glasgow tenants, who voted yes in the ballot in the belief that, as the Government told them, second-stage transfer to small-scale community housing associations would take place.
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Mr George Reid):
NPA
The next item of business is a debate on motion S2M-5617, in the name of Rhona Brankin, on affordable housing.
The Minister for Communities (Rhona Brankin):
Lab
As we move towards the end of the second session of Parliament, it is time to take stock of our many achievements on affordable housing provision. I begin by...
Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP):
SNP
Given the desire to create affordable housing, why are compulsory purchase orders used so little to release land for housing, particularly in pressured areas...
Rhona Brankin:
Lab
In rural parts of Scotland such as islands, spend has increased. Communities Scotland is working in creative ways with the Forestry Commission Scotland to re...
Richard Lochhead (Moray) (SNP):
SNP
Will the minister give way?
Rhona Brankin:
Lab
No; I must make progress.I referred to the forest land scheme, which I launched last year and which is another measure that is targeted specifically at rural...
Richard Lochhead:
SNP
Will the minister give way?
Rhona Brankin:
Lab
I would like to make progress.Our affordable housing funding is being supplemented by the additional income from reduced council tax discounts for second and...
Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind):
Ind
My question relates directly to the composition of the group. Are tenants in the majority?
Rhona Brankin:
Lab
The group reflects the people involved in delivering affordable housing—its composition reflects local authorities, tenants groups and the private housing se...
Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP):
SNP
I confess to being astonished that the housing minister could present a debate on the Government's record in housing and could speak for 11 minutes without m...
Margo MacDonald:
Ind
Would an SNP-led Executive ensure that the City of Edinburgh Council was able to build council houses, as the tenants in Edinburgh have said no to stock tran...
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
I have repeatedly said to the minister that all tenants have been more or less blackmailed into a yes vote. I have made it clear to ministers that they shoul...
The Deputy Minister for Communities (Des McNulty):
Lab
In any and every ward in Glasgow that has social rented housing, substantial investment is being made in repairs and central heating. Huge amounts of investm...
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
The tenants voted for small housing associations, as the deputy minister—
Des McNulty:
Lab
They voted for investment.
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
Wait a minute: the minister did not address the stock-transfer policy in her speech, so Des McNulty is not going to waste time trying to defend it in mine. T...
Des McNulty:
Lab
Will Tricia Marwick give way?
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
No I will not. Professor Bramley highlighted the fact that, as well as a need for new affordable housing to keep pace with demand, there was a backlog to be ...
Rhona Brankin:
Lab
Will Tricia Marwick give way?
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
No, I will not.That statistic shows one of the reasons why there is such pressure now.I find it hard to believe that the Bramley report did not take housing ...
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
You have one minute.
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
Most are not eligible for social housing, but they are being priced out of the housing market.I hope that you will give me a couple more minutes, given the i...
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
No. I have given you a bit more. I will give you another minute from now.
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
Okay. Many of those people are precisely the kind of people that Scotland needs—young graduates and families who want to put down roots.I recommend that MSPs...
Mr David Davidson (North East Scotland) (Con):
Con
We Conservatives consider the need for affordable housing to be among the top priorities for Scotland. We know that both the private and public rental and pu...
Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP):
SNP
Will the member explain the Conservatives' policy on council houses? Do they regard councils to be appropriate landlords and will they continue to support lo...
Mr Davidson:
Con
I will come to that point in a moment, when I will reply to the member fully.The council house service is under increasing pressure, with the average debt pe...
Dr Sylvia Jackson (Stirling) (Lab):
Lab
Is the member advocating not offering tenants a vote with regard to housing-stock transfer? Is he suggesting that we should just go ahead and do it without a...
Mr Davidson:
Con
That is not what I said at all. However, if the Government had gone about the task properly, people would not have voted no—they did so because of the confus...