Highland Council Under Fire Over New Homes

CAMPAIGNERS are criticising Highland Council for ditching plans to build new council houses in the Highlands in the same week it decided on rent increases for tenants.

The Solidarity party says it has been inundated with support for building council homes for rent through its campaign across the region.

It argues the council is driving the most talented young people to cities such as Glasgow because the cost of housing is so high.

The party says there were only 385 new house starts in Highland in the first six months of last year, a drop from 867 in the first six months in 2007.

And this year the numbers are expected to drop again.

“People keep telling us they have been on the waiting list for ages or they have adult children who are stuck at home because they can’t afford a place of their own,” commented Solidarity spokesman Steve Arnott.

“We get a lot of single people and young couples paying out nearly half their monthly income in insecure short-term private rented accommodation.

“The Highlands are crying out – particularly in the current economic circumstances – for new council houses to bring stability and affordability to people’s lives.”

The council says it cannot afford to build new houses because the government subsidy for them is only 20 per cent, compared to a subsidy of 70 per cent for housing associations.

But Frank Ward, Solidarity housing campaigner and secretary of the Highlands Against Stock Transfer organisation which defeated council housing sell-off plans two years ago, says housing associations cannot meet the scale of need.

“There are many thousands of people here in the Highlands on the waiting list and thousands more who don’t even bother putting themselves on the waiting list because they know that they haven’t a hope in hell.”

Councillors have stressed they wish to build council houses again but it does not make financial sense at this time.

The council’s housing and social work committee said it was more cost effective to provide affordable housing via housing associations than to sign up for the government’s £25 million scheme to encourage more building.

Solidarity Party spokesman Steve Arnott says the Highlands are crying out for new council homes. Bobby Nelson

Councillor Margaret Davidson committee chairman, added: “The sums do not add up.”

She will be seeking a cross party meeting with government ministers to discuss other options.

Meanwhile, organisations which represent thousands of council tenants in the Highlands have been accused of not doing their jobs over council rent increases.

Highland Council will hike rents by four per cent from April, an average of £2.46, to bring the average weekly sum to £63.94.

Nigel Slater, chairman of the struggling Highland Tenants and Residents Federation, criticised local residents and tenants associations for not doing enough to fight the increases.

He explained his organisation was in abeyance because it does not get enough funding from the council to do its job.

“I would like to know what the local tenants and residents associations are doing to fight the rent increases being imposed on council tenants,” he said.

“Some of them are good at getting playing fields and amenities, but when it comes to challenging the council over rents rises I think most of them just say ‘yes sir, no sir, three bags full sir’.”