In April 2024, the Scottish Government established the Housing Investment Taskforce to consider how to unlock both existing and new investment in housing across all tenures, with a particular focus on affordability. Convened by the then Scottish Housing Minister, Paul McLennan MSP, the Taskforce brought together experts from the public and private sectors to identify practical, scalable solutions that would make Scotland one of the most attractive destinations for housing investment.
The Taskforce’s work is rooted in a clear understanding: investment in affordable housing is not just a financial imperative, it’s also a social one. With rising demand, constrained public budgets, and economic uncertainty, the need for innovative, scalable, and sustainable solutions has never been more urgent.
Key Recommendations to Boost Affordable Housing
The report outlines 28 actions, but several stand out for their potential to transform affordable housing delivery:
Exemptions from Rent Control: The Taskforce supports exempting Build to Rent and Mid-Market Rent properties from rent control to unlock stalled developments and attract new capital.
Long-Term Funding Commitments: A call for the Scottish Government to commit to a minimum level of affordable housing funding, recognising housing as critical infrastructure, is central to building investor confidence and enabling long-term planning.
Leveraging Public Land and Assets: Rather than seeking upfront capital receipts, the report advocates for equity-based partnerships that share risk and reward—turning public land into long-term income streams.
Shared Ownership Models: The Taskforce recommends revisiting shared ownership schemes, supported by legislative reform, to make them more attractive to lenders and buyers. It's estimated that a best-practice model could deliver up to 2,000 homes per year, therefore delivering a substantial contribution.
Aggregator Models and Pension Fund Investment: The report explores the potential of fund-based approaches and aggregators to blend public and private capital, including the use of local government pension funds to support affordable housing delivery.
Mid-Market Rent: Mid-Market Rent (MMR) is highlighted as a flexible and financially viable model, particularly for key workers and households earning between £20,000 and £45,000 per year. The New Avenue Living fund, for example, is delivering over 1,200 affordable homes at EPC ‘B’ standard, supported by £175 million in investor equity.
Local Authority Capacity and Debt: The report reveals that in 2023/24, Housing Revenue Account (HRA) debt servicing costs reached £343 million—nearly 25% of income across 26 local authorities. Overall HRA debt rose by £600 million in a single year, a 12% increase. The Taskforce estimates that writing off historic HRA debt could enable the development of up to 3,673 new social homes per year with standard subsidy arrangements.
Conclusion
The Taskforce concludes that by aligning public ambition with private capital, and by embracing new models of partnership and delivery, Scotland has the opportunity to lead the way in affordable housing innovation.
The recommended actions all work on paper, in theory. The Scottish Government has committed to implementing all of the Taskforce's recommendations, but it will be interesting to see which of the recommendations become a reality. This will depend on parties' appetite to do things differently, with the hope of achieving a different outcome.
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