Talking-up Scotland

As you can see from the above diagram in Scottish housing News, yesterday, more than a million people in Scotland are able to live in Social Housing. Around 23% of Scots have access to such housing compared to only 17 and 16% in England and Wales respectively. Also, the actual cost of social housing, in Scotland is up to 21% lower than in the rest of the UK. The Scottish housing minister said

‘Social housing in Scotland continues to be more affordable than England or Wales, which is vital at a time when UK government welfare cuts are having a devastating impact on people across the country.  We are increasing funding for discretionary housing payments – which significantly benefit those living in the social housing sector – by 5%, to over £60 million in 2018/19. That will enable us to continue mitigating the bedroom tax and provide a lifeline for those who need extra help. Since 2007 we have delivered nearly 71,000 affordable homes, with almost 70% of those being for social rent. Over this Parliament we have a commitment to deliver 50,000 affordable homes, including 35,000 for social rent. We have put in place a number of measures to deliver that, in addition to ending the right to buy, keeping existing social housing stock in the sector and protecting it for future generations.’

http://www.scottishhousingnews.com/19825/marginal-increase-number-social-housing-tenants-scotland/

Regular readers will know that Scotland is also building ‘affordable housing’ (the same as ‘social housing’?) at a faster rate than elsewhere in the UK and that the Scottish Government is showing a determination to keep it going. See:

Scottish Government increases supply of affordable housing and builds at more, perhaps much more, than twice the rate as in England

SNP Government overturn Tory/Independent-run Moray Council on affordable homes denial

£756 million of support for building affordable homes in SNP budget

I’ve lost track now of the many stories suggesting a different set of values is dominant in Scottish politics and society, not just in the SNP, which suggest Scotland is different enough to justify independence.