A £1.7BILLION INVESTMENT in affordable housing throughout Scotland has been revealed by the Scottish Government – with £24million of that heading for Moray.
The funding should give home builders throughout the country an opportunity to plan ahead with new grant subsidies being guaranteed for the next three years – this first time that has been done in Scotland.
Funding will be released in stages with the first £532million arriving in the 2018/19 financial year, rising to £591million the following year and £630million in 2020/21.
Housing Minister Kevin Stewart said the funding will support a Scottish Government commitment of delivering 50,000 affordable homes by 2021. He said: “We are ensuring that Moray has homes that are high-quality, efficient and affordable.
“Today, we are announcing to local authorities how much money they’ll have to invest in affordable housing until the end of this Parliament. It means they can plan these new affordable homes now – with the certainty that the funding will increase year-on-year.
“This is also an important signal to the house-building sector in Scotland and demonstrates our commitment to the industry and the estimated 14,000 jobs our affordable housing supply programme supports each year.”
Welcoming the news, Moray’s MSP Richard Lochhead said: “The announcement that Moray will receive over £24m over the next three years provides the certainty that Moray and the sector needs to keep progressing and ensures we keep up the momentum to reach the Scottish Government’s target of 50,000 new affordable homes by 2021.
“Increasing the supply of affordable homes is a key SNP commitment and plays a vital role in helping to tackle poverty and inequality in Moray. With a significant housing shortage and long waiting lists locally, this funding is a welcome boost.
“Committing funding until the end of this parliament will help ensure that Scotland leads the way in building homes that are high-quality, efficient and affordable, and will strengthen our house-building sector and the estimated 14,000 jobs that the affordable housing supply programme supports each year.
“Everyone in Moray, and indeed Scotland, deserves a warm, affordable home and with a huge number of affordable homes approved last year, we are making great progress towards that aim.”