Housing Investment Taskforce minutes: June 2024

Items and actions

Paul McLennan MSP, Minister for Housing, welcomed members to the second meeting of the Housing Investment Taskforce at CoSLA’s offices in Edinburgh. 

 

1. Summary note of last meeting – agreed for publication. 

 

2. Data and Evidence Information - paper presented outlining published figures on public and private sector completion, starts and investment. In discussion: 

• Agreed further contextual data on planning applications and approvals, Build to Rent, future pipeline housing projects and unit delivery costs to be included.   
• Noted the potential for future consideration of financial/development capacity study for affordable housing given lack of up to date assessment. 
• Discussed decreased housing budget, loss of financial transaction capital and reviewing the decision making process for funding affordable housing/providing certainty around grant available. 
• Experience of Manchester and Birmingham highlighted, with varying success and other drivers (both positive and negative) of strong private investment resulting from clear local authority vision, linking economy and housing provision, supported by local authority planners and partnership working.  
• Lack of competition in contractors/regulation resulting in increased costs. 
• Good examples cited of City of Edinburgh Council’s approach to pre-application discussions on major sites. 

 

3. Planning Paper – Members noted ongoing work to make improvements to the planning system. In discussion: 

• Resourcing and skills issues across Scotland impacting planning workforce, with work ongoing to address these to support the next generation of planners. 
• Acknowledgement that planning reform and 2019 Planning (Scotland) Act led to uncertainty but adoption of NPF4 last year provided a clearer picture, with 10 year cycle of development plans and all tenure approach, for example.  Discussion explained the series of emerging actions forthcoming to provide additional planning advice. 
• Highlighted opportunities from Green freeports and the green energy expansion with new powers for masterplan consent areas. 

 

4. Priority Workstreams – Members agreed to take forward the following seven priority workstreams and associated reporting timescale to full Taskforce, with agreement sought from Taskforce members for their involvement in each.  

• Housing Bill – rent control measures (September 2024) 
• Housing Investment and potential for adopting good practice from beyond Scotland (September 2024) 
• Income strips (long lease arrangements) for affordable homes (November 2024) 
• Affordability and flexibility of finance and borrowing limitations to fund affordable housing (November 2024) 
• Home ownership support (January 2025) 
• Delivery through new partnerships for housing development (January 2025) 
• Stalled sites and potential interventions (January 2025) 

 

Members also asked for certainty on rent control from the Housing Bill as soon as practicable to allow this to be reflected in workstream outputs. 

 

Next steps  

Evidence paper to be updated. 

Priority workstreams to begin following confirmation of membership, with next step being initiation meetings.