Up to 7,000 affordable homes could be on their way to Glasgow but the GHA must do its bit

Following the answer to a parliamentary question laid by SNP MSP Bob Doris, the Glasgow MSP today welcomed the record public investment put into social housing in Glasgow by the Scottish Government.

"Glasgow has held its level of public investment in social housing in what was the poorest ever spending settlement from the UK government to Scotland. Despite this, affordable housing investment Scotland wide provided by the Scottish government will see £1.5 billion invested, a 19% increase over the next three years. In the next year alone Glasgow city council (who administers the Housing Association Grant) will get £83m and that number rises to £162m if money given to the GHA is included. Scotland will see at least an additional affordable 21,500 houses planned by 2011.

"I am confident that the City Council and Glasgow's Housing Associations will work together to use this grant as efficiently as possible. In terms of a potential share of the overall Scotland total this could be up to an additional 7,000 affordable homes approved for Glasgow by 2011. However for this to happen the GHA needs to play its part too. They are supposed to deliver on 3,000 homes and have planned for merely a few hundred to date. With the public money they have received, £79.3m in year one alone,  the number of affordable homes they could deliver by 2011 is actually closer to 3,500. I expect them to play their part. If not future monies must be taken from them and given to those that can".

Notes:

• Scotland wide total is £493m for 08-09. 09-10 and 10-11 figures per Local Authority will be announced in subsequent years and the figure for the 3 years totals £1.5 billion (19% increase).
  
• There is a target of 21,500 affordable homes to be approved by 2011.
  
• Glasgow figures can be projected by taking their percentage of Scotland wide funding in year 1 and calculating that as a percentage of the 21,500 total approvals form 2011.
  
• This gives a potential for up to 3619 affordable homes from GCC and partners and up to 3458 from the GHA, a combined potential total of over 7,000 homes.
  
• Written Parliamentary Question and answer