MORE than 100,000 affordable homes have been built during the SNP’s term in power, new figures show.
Since the SNP took power in 2007, 102,055 affordable houses have been delivered - 69% of which have been made available for social rent.
Almost half of those built in the last 14 years were delivered between the 2016-17 and 2020-21 financial years, with 41,353 being finished during that time.
The SNP had pledged at the last election to build 50,000 homes during the last parliamentary session but Housing Secretary Shona Robison said the target had been missed because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Robison (below) has hailed the milestone as a “remarkable achievement”.
“Today’s statistics tell the story of more than 100,000 households being given access to high-quality, affordable homes – whether they be for social rent or people owning a home for the first time,” she said.
“I would like to thank registered social landlords, local authorities, the construction sector and our other partners for helping us hit this significant milestone.
“Scotland has been leading the way across the UK with delivery of affordable housing, but we know there is more to do to ensure everyone has a warm, affordable home that meets their needs in a vibrant, safe community.”
She added: “Our utmost priority over the past year has been to keep Scotland safe from coronavirus, and this has meant placing restrictions on construction or at times stopping it altogether.
“While this has affected our ability to meet our target of delivering 50,000 affordable homes over the last parliamentary period, we are continuing to work closely with partners across the housing sector to deliver the remaining homes as quickly as it is safe to do so.”
The Scottish Government pledged earlier this year to build a further 100,000 affordable homes by 2032 as part of the Housing to 2040 strategy. Under the plans, 70% would be available for social rent.
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“This is just one of the actions set out in our Housing to 2040 strategy for building a fairer, more equal housing sector, alongside taking steps to tackle high rents in the private sector, setting a single set of standards for housing quality and accessibility, and continuing our work to end homelessness and rough sleeping once and for all,” Robison added.
New build completions dropped by 20% between June 2019 and June 2020, according to the statistics, with 17,029 being finished.
Scotland’s construction industry was effectively shuttered from March 2020 as a result of Covid-19.
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