‘Truly scandalous’ figures show 100,000 children on housing waiting list in Scotland

More than 100,000 children across Scotland are on the waiting list for social housing, new figures have revealed.

The Scottish Conservatives branded the total an “absolute disgrace” as they blasted the Scottish Government over a “failure to build enough affordable homes”.

Tory housing spokesman Miles Briggs said: “Communities across Scotland are facing a housing crisis and we are seeing precious little in the way of action from the SNP-Green Government to tackle it.”

Data obtained by the Tories using freedom of information requests to Scotland’s councils shows 327,585 people across the country are on the waiting list for either a council or housing association home.

This includes 103,732 children, the figures show, although the true total will be higher as West Dunbartonshire Council did not provide the numbers on its waiting list.

Meanwhile Scottish Government figures from March showed the number of affordable homes approved in 2022 fell to 6,554 – the lowest level for almost a decade.

Briggs condemned the Scottish Government for a “wholly illogical decision to slash the housing budget”, saying this has now “come back to haunt ministers”.

He urged ministers to “reverse those deeply damaging cuts immediately” – warning that without such action the number of people on housing waiting lists will “spiral even further out of control”.

He said: “These figures are an absolute disgrace and wholly unacceptable.

“It should be a source of shame for SNP-Green ministers that over 100,000 Scottish children are currently on social housing waiting lists, and the figure will be even higher with one council not responding.

“They completely expose the SNP-Green Government’s failure to build enough affordable homes for people and families across Scotland.

“Typically the rhetoric regarding housebuilding has been good from ministers, but they have been miles off matching that when it has come to delivery.

“Overall over 300,000 people are on the waiting list for social houses in our country, which is a truly scandalous state of affairs.”