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Council house building
09/04/2009
Scotland's first major council house building programme in thirty years is a step closer today.
The first successful applicants to apply for a share of £25 million to help kickstart a new generation of local authority homes have been announced.
Fourteen councils will benefit from a share of the cash from the Scottish Government which will provide over 970 new affordable homes.
Nearly £17 million has been allocated in this round of funding and work is currently underway to ensure the remainder of the cash is distributed as quickly as possible.
The council house building fund is just one part of a wider package supporting affordable housing in the economic downturn. Already the Scottish Government has:
- announced a record £644 million for housing associations this year
- extended the open market shared equity pilot to cover the whole of Scotland, backed by £60 million
- announced its intention to legislate to end the right to buy on all new build social housing
- launched the £35 million Homeowners Support Fund which helps property owners who may be struggling to keep up with mortgage repayments
Minister for Housing and Communities, Alex Neil, said:
"The Scottish Government is investing record amounts in affordable housing, more than £1.5 billion over three years, despite the tightest settlement from Westminster since devolution.
"These are hard times for businesses and families across Scotland and this government is working hard to meet this challenge, refocus activity and ensure Scotland gets through the economic downturn in the strongest possible position.
"In the Scottish Government's first year in office, more social sector homes were started than at any time since the early 1990s.
"Building on this, the announcement today will help the successful local authorities to reverse decades of decline in council house building as well as safeguarding jobs, supporting the construction industry and keeping the economy moving."
The successful local authorities are as follows:
- Aberdeenshire - £850,000 for 34 homes
- Edinburgh - £1,675,000 for 67 homes
- East Lothian - £2,625,000 for 105 homes
- Falkirk - £750,000 for 30 homes
- Fife - £875,000 for 35 homes
- Midlothian - £2,520,000 for 252 homes
- Moray - £1,000,000 for 40 homes
- North Ayrshire - £575,000 for 23 homes
- North Lanarkshire - £1,000,000 for 40 homes
- Orkney - £450,000 for 18 homes
- Perth and Kinross - £650,000 for 26 homes
- South Lanarkshire - £850,000 for 34 homes
- Stirling - £600,000 for 24 homes
- West Lothian - £2,480,000 for 248 homes