Responding to the Budget statement, which included measures to kick start the housing market, Graeme Brown, Director of Shelter Scotland, housing and homelessness charity said:

“Shelter submitted a fiscal stimulus package (1) to the UK Treasury to kick start the economy, build homes and ensure everyone has a house.

“A package of £600 million to unlock stalled housing sites was announced today to deliver new homes in England. It appears this will include extra money for Scotland through Barnett consequentials.

“The Scottish Government has backed Shelter’s campaign for a fiscal stimulus for affordable housing. This appears to have resulted in £60 million being made available in Scotland, which we must use to build rented homes for those hundreds of thousands who are on waiting lists, in temporary accommodation, or threatened with losing their homes through the economic downturn.

He added: “Other measures like the increase and extended Support for Mortgage Interest scheme and the expansion of the stamp duty holiday are short term measures to deal with the current economic situation. There can be no replacement for building more homes in the long run.

“And while the Scottish Government has worked to pull money for housing forward to this year, the budget for homes looks to be short next year. The extra funding through today’s UK Budget appears to mean more cash for housing. Shelter believes the Scottish Government must ensure adequate funding over the coming years to house those in need, and meet Scotland’s internationally acclaimed homelessness legislation.”

Notes for Editors:

(1) Shelter had submitted a fiscal stimulus package to the UK Treasury for more money for housing in the April Budget. This could have meant a spin-off through the Barnett Formula of £600 million extra for housing in Scotland, which would built 6,000 homes, got dormant construction sites working again and sustained over 10,000 jobs. For more information, please see 'Building homes and protecting jobs: the case for a fiscal stimulus through additional housing investment in Scotland'.