This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Delivering better housing for all
14/03/2001
-Baillie addresses Chartered Institute of Housing Conference-
Improving private sector housing is a central part of the Executive's housing vision, Social Justice Minister Jackie Baillie said today.
Announcing the membership of the Housing Improvement Task Force at the Chartered Institute of Housing Conference in Dundee, she said that owner occupiers and tenants of private landlords had the same right to high quality homes as those in social housing.
The Task Force has been charged with examining a range of housing issues in the private sector and recommending options for change.
Later in the day, she launched a 'Thinking about Buying' booklet at the Tayside Solicitors Property Centre. The booklet, which contains practical information and advice for prospective buyers, will be available at council housing offices, property centres and Citizens Advice Bureaux across Scotland.
Ms Baillie said:
"The Housing Bill is focused on providing warm, dry homes in the social housing sector through new investment and the best ever package of tenants' rights. But we recognise that conditions and standards in the private sector also need to be improved.
"That's why the Housing Improvement Task Force was set up, and I'm delighted to announce today a wide-ranging membership to drive this work forward.
"It's important that our housing policies respond to the desire for home ownership in Scotland. 75% of all heads of households aspire to owner occupation and 60% of social sector tenants aged under 60 aspire to own their homes. Our approach is to support households in realising these ambitions if their financial circumstances allow.
"The new information booklet will help prospective buyers with the right questions to ask so that they understand the responsibilities which owning a home brings."
The Minister also announced the appointment of a sociable neighbourhood champion - Diane James - to tackle anti-social behaviour and promote good practice in resolving neighbour disputes.
She continued:
"Diane will be working with councils, other housing providers and communities themselves to deal with the anti-social behaviour which blights many of our neighbourhoods.
"Her work complements the tougher action we are taking in the Housing Bill through introducing short 'probationary' tenancies for people with a history of anti-social behaviour."
Membership of Housing Improvement Task Force
Chairman:
Jackie Baillie, Minister for Social Justice
External Members:
David Chalmers, Dunfermline Building Society, Confederation of Mortgage Lenders
Donald MacRae, Lloyds TSB Scotland plc
John Spencely, Architect, Member of the Scottish Homes Board
Anne Lear, Chief Executive of Govanhill Housing Association
Chris Cunningham, Deputy Chief Executive of Glasgow Housing Association
Iain Gillies, Graham and Sibbald, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors
Robert Rennie, Ballantyne and Copeland, School of Law, Glasgow University
John Blackwood, O'Neills Surveyors and Estate Agents, Association of Residential Letting Agencies and Scottish Association of Landlords
Martyn Evans, Director of the Scottish Consumer Council
Neil Watts, Hacking and Paterson, Property Factors Association
Alan Ferguson, Chartered Institute of Housing
Liz Nicolson, Shelter
Monica Patterson, Head of Housing Services, North Lanarkshire Council
Moira Munro, School of Planning and Housing, Heriot Watt University
Professor Lorne Crerar, Harper MacLeod
BACKGROUND
1. The Housing Improvement Task Force was announced on 12 December 2000. Its first meeting will be on 28 March. The Task Force is examining:
- The forms of financial assistance available for owner occupiers;
- The powers available to local authorities to compel private owners to invest in their property;
- The likely effect of providing better information as part of the house purchase process - taking account of proposals for sellers surveys and sellers packs;
- The arrangements in place for the management of flatted blocks in private ownership;
- The proposal for stronger regulation of the privately rented sector, for example, by extending the existing licensing arrangements which have been recently introduced for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs); and
- The effect of tenancy legislation in the private rented sector.
2. The Scottish Executive is supporting households with mortgage difficulties. The Executive is supporting the Mortgage Rights Bill and is considering the merits of a national Mortgage Rescue or Mortgage to Rent Scheme.
3. The Common Repairs Working Group was set up by Wendy Alexander, then Minister for Communities, in November 1999. Membership includes COSLA, Scottish Federation of Housing Associations, Chartered Institute of Housing, and Scottish Consumer Council. It commissioned two information booklets to provide buyers with a greater knowledge of home ownership. The first 'pre-purchase' booklet was launched today, and is available from David Fernandez on 0131 244 2105. A 'post-purchase' booklet will be published later this year.
4. Diane James, previously at Edinburgh City Council, joins COSLA in a 2-year sociable neighbourhood champion role funded by the Executive. She will help to raise the profile of the problem of nuisance neighbours, promote good practice across Scotland, and work with councils and others to develop successful strategies. The sociable neighbourhoods initiative was first announced on 24 October 2000 and is backed with £250,000 from the Executive.
5. A number of booklets to address noise nuisance problems have also been published today. These are available from David Fernandez on 0131 244 2105.
Sound Advice on Noise - Don't suffer in silence . The Scottish Executive's new noise booklet will replace in Scotland the existing DETR noise booklet currently used throughout the UK. Aimed at a general readership, it will advise members of the public about how they can solve noise nuisance problems. The Executive prepared the booklet in consultation with local authorities and the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland.
Noisy Neighbours (Legal Services Agency Ltd). The Legal Services Agency Ltd is a National Charitable Law Centre which received a 3 year grant from the Scottish Executive to produce a series of publications on housing issues. The Noisy Neighbours leaflet is intended to be a general guide to the law as it relates to noise complaints between neighbours.
Community Mediation - Settling Neighbour Problems Informally (SACRO). This guide, funded by the Scottish Executive, describes the benefits to be gained by social housing providers and their clients in providing mediation services and examines options in service delivery.
Community Mediation - Choosing a Model of Service Delivery (SACRO). This guide, funded by the Scottish Executive, is part of a broader initiative to assist social housing providers in developing the provision of mediation across Scotland.
News Release: SE0637/2001
14 Mar 2001