HOMES for Scotland (HFS) has described first minister John Swinney’s commitment to reforming Scotland’s planning and regulatory landscape as ‘encouraging’.
The organisation has responded to the Programme for Government, which sets out the ambitions for the new five-year parliamentary session including making Scotland a better place to invest and do business; helping more businesses to start, scale and innovate; and connecting people to better work.
HFS chief executive Jane Wood said, “With Scotland now in the third year of a housing emergency and both starts and completions continuing to decline, it is encouraging to see housing remain central to the first minister’s thinking. Not only does it support his defining mission of eradicating child poverty, it is also crucial to economic growth on which wider social policy goals depend.
“The first minister has made clear that reform of the planning and regulatory landscape will underpin the progress he wants to achieve. This, together with the principle of ‘regulate last, regulate simply and regulate flexibly’ has our full support, but strong leadership is essential to deliver meaningful change. The significance of his commitment to have attitudes rooted in ‘yes, if” rather than ‘no, because’ cannot therefore be underestimated. That cultural shift is urgently needed if Scotland is to overcome the barriers preventing much-needed homes from being built.”
The response follows comments published on LinkedIn earlier this week highlighting growing frustration among businesses at the increasingly difficult environment in which they are trying to deliver new homes, with one describing rural SME builders as ‘fighting for their lives’.
Jane Wood added, “The first minister has set a welcome direction, but there is no time to lose in rewiring the system. We need to see barriers removed, investment maximised and these commitments translated quickly into practical action. The home building sector stands ready to support this work. We must now move forward together with renewed purpose and urgency if we are to increase housing delivery and bring Scotland’s housing emergency to an end.”
