Almost 10,000 children in temporary housing for Christmas, Labour warns

Scottish ministers must “take responsibility” for the housing crisis, Scottish Labour warned after figures revealed 9,500 children face Christmas in temporary accommodation.

At First Minister’s Question (FMQs) on Thursday, Labour leader Anas Sarwar warned 15,000 families are currently housed temporarily in hostels, B&Bs and hotels.

With families waiting an average of 347 days for a permanent home, according to Shelter Scotland, he demanded the Scottish Government relaunches its mortgage to shared equity support scheme, which has not had a single successful applicant since 2015/16.

The scheme sees the Scottish Government take a temporary equity in shares in homes to help owners reduce payments.

Speaking at FMQs, which was taken by Deputy First Minister Shona Robison, Mr Sarwar said: “Every family that loses their home risks joining the almost 30,000 families who are currently homeless in Scotland.

“Over 15,000 families across the country are staying in temporary accommodation right now – many of them are in hostels, B&Bs and hotel rooms.

“Shockingly, that means 9,500 children will wake up on Christmas morning without a home to call their own.”

He asked Ms Robison if she is “ashamed” of the figures.

She responded: “Many families are facing real pressure, not just at Christmas but throughout the year, as the Tory-caused cost-of-living crisis continues to bite and effect their household finances.”

She said the Scottish Government would “continue to look at what more it can do” in reinstating the mortgage support scheme.

The Deputy First Minister also said around £3 billion had been used to support families, including mitigating UK Government policies such as the bedroom tax.

“These are pressures that come on the Scottish budget for things that we have to mitigate – and I’m going to be honest, we cannot mitigate everything because we don’t have the resources to do so,” she said.

Measures to support families facing homelessness, she said, include discretionary housing payments for renters in receipt of certain benefits.

But Mr Sarwar warned: “We have a housing emergency in Scotland – something that this SNP Government fails to recognise.”

He said a child is made homeless approximately every 45 seconds.

“We desperately need more homes, but this SNP Government cut the housing budget by more than a quarter and new housing starts are down 24%,” Mr Sarwar said.

“This Government’s incompetence has consequences.

“We cannot wait for more families to be made homeless before this SNP Government takes responsibility for the crisis it created.”

Referencing the homelessness figures, Ms Robison told the chamber: “We are taking action – that’s why we have a housing plan of £3.5 billion of investment over the course of this Parliament to deliver 110,000 new homes by 2032.

“It’s why, of course, we have in Scotland, the strongest rights across the UK for people experiencing homelessness.

“We will continue to invest in housing and invest in tackling homelessness.”

Two city councils – Glasgow and Edinburgh – have declared housing emergencies, while Argyll and Bute made the alert in June.