- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 September 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 30 September 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-35785 by Alex Neil on 19 August 2010, what expertise the Scottish Futures Trust has regarding housing matters.
Answer
Staff at the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) have experience in both the private and public sector of delivering large investment projects. This experience is demonstrated by the SFT''S delivery of £111 million of net savings and benefits for the taxpayer during 2009-10, its first full year of operation. The National Housing Trust (NHT) initiative is a collaborative project and the SFT is acting as a central purchasing body for the NHT. The SFT has worked closely with Scottish Government and local authority housing officers, along with the private sector, in the NHT''s development.
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 September 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 30 September 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the 8,092 units completed under the Affordable Housing Investment Programme in 2009-10 were for sale.
Answer
The number of housing units completed in 2009-10 under the Affordable Housing Investment Programme which were intended for sale (either outright or in part) was 2,568.
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 23 September 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 30 September 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how many houses sold under the Open Market Shared Equity Scheme in 2009 cost (a) less than £80,000, (b) between £80,000 and £120,000 and (c) over £120,000.
Answer
In 2009-10 there were 1,459 houses sold under the Open Market Shared Equity Pilot. Of these 274 properties sold for less than £80,000, 942 properties sold between £80,000 and £120,000, and 243 sold for over £120,000.
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 03 September 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 27 September 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions have taken place between it and COSLA regarding the UK Government’s proposed changes to Housing Benefit.
Answer
We have real concerns about the impact these proposals might have and are taking steps to ensure that the views of the people of Scotland are heard in London. It is essential that any changes do not affect the most vulnerable households, who simply cannot afford a reduction in housing benefit. Officials have been in contact with a broad range of key Scottish stakeholders, including COSLA, to discuss the implications of the UK Government''s proposals and to ensure that their views and concerns are reflected in our discussions with Whitehall.
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 27 September 2010
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Current Status:
Awaiting answer
To ask the Scottish Executive how many tenants will face a reduction in Local Housing Allowance as a result of changes proposed by the UK Government.
Answer
Awaiting answer
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 27 September 2010
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Current Status:
Awaiting answer
To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the 8,092 units completed under the Affordable Housing Investment Programme in 2009-10 were for sale.
Answer
Awaiting answer
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 September 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 21 September 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-30126 by Alex Neil on 15 January 2010, what further progress there has been in establishing a housing investment bank.
Answer
A housing investment bank is one of the ideas about how to fund investment in affordable housing which was included in this summer''s wide-ranging debate on how we meet the challenges facing housing over the next five years and beyond. Officials have also been working on access to pension funds and other forms of institutional investment. A policy paper on housing priorities will be published this winter which will reflect the views heard this summer and the outcome from the forthcoming spending review.
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 03 September 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 21 September 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what procedures are in place to monitor the implementation of the Wider Role Fund
Answer
Implementation of the Wider Role Fund is administered by officials within the Housing and Regeneration Directorate. Current monitoring procedures are as follows:
Each grant award letter contains a schedule listing activities, outputs and outcomes the project intends to achieve.
At quarterly intervals RSLs provide monitoring information for their projects. This sets out progress compared to that anticipated in the grant award letter.
Monitoring visits are made to randomly selected projects.
Informal monitoring of project progress is undertaken through regular contact with RSLs.
The fund is subject to standard Scottish Government financial monitoring and reporting systems.
Selected projects are written up as case studies and published online by the Scottish Centre for Regeneration''s Learning Networks.
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 03 September 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 21 September 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to produce an evaluation of the Wider Role Fund
Answer
There are currently no plans to produce an evaluation of the Wider Role Fund.
- Asked by: Mary Mulligan, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 August 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Neil on 15 September 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what the rent arrears in each local authority was in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10.
Answer
The rent arrears in each local authority are given as part of the official statistics publication,
Local authority housing income and expenditure: 1997-98 to 2009-10. The publication and associated tables can be accessed at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Housing-Regeneration/HSfS/HRA2008-09.
Details of rent arrears in each local authority are available on the Excel tables accessible through this link.
