THE Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) has warned that private finance alone cannot end the nation’s housing emergency.
The organisation was responding to a government-commissioned report on increasing investment in the housing sector.
Last year, Scotland’s housing minister Paul McLennan MSP set up the housing investment taskforce to identify actions to unlock existing and new commitments to investment in housing. The taskforce involves a number of private and public organisations including lenders, local authorities and housing associations, and has been supported in its work by the Scottish Government and the Scottish National Investment Bank.
In its final report, the taskforce has proposed a series of actions to boost housing investment. These include recommendations on exempting Mid-Market Rent (MMR) properties from rent controls, something which is currently proposed in the Scottish Government’s Housing Bill.
Some of the report’s other recommendations include calling on the government to recognise housing as critical infrastructure, setting out a long-term plan for housing investment, and allowing affordable housing to be delivered on a ‘for-profit’ basis.
Responding to the report, SFHA welcomed recommendations on long-term funding for affordable housing, recognising housing as critical infrastructure and exempting MMR properties from rent controls, but warned that efforts to boost private investment in social housing ‘must supplement and not replace’ public funding.
SFHA chief executive Sally Thomas said, “It’s welcome that the taskforce report recognises housing as critical infrastructure, accepts that we need long-term funding commitments and also recommends exempting Mid-Market Rent homes from rent controls. These are all sensible positions and we hope we will now see swift action to provide certainty to MMR providers through an amendment to the Housing Bill.
“In terms of some of the report’s other recommendations, it’s worth noting that the role of private finance in delivering social homes is to supplement the funding that not-for profit housing associations receive from government. Our members then reinvest any surplus into tenants’ homes. This tried and tested model is what keeps rents affordable for tenants and is why rents in the social sector average half the amount in the private rented sector.
“So, whilst we welcome any efforts to increase investment in housing, we must bear in mind that the single biggest roadblock to building more social homes is a lack of certainty on long-term public funding. Private finance alone cannot end the housing emergency: what we need to see is a long-term funding plan for social housing with public money combined with private investment, as would be the case for other types of critical infrastructure essential for the functioning of the country.”
