'Meaningful' contribution expected to tackle soaring homelessness costs in Glasgow

Glasgow is expecting a “meaningful contribution” from the Scottish Government towards the city’s soaring homelessness costs, which are set to hit £75 million next year.

Talks have been held with Deputy First Minister Jenny Gilruth over the high levels of homelessness in Glasgow, which has led to huge spending on hotels and B&Bs.

At a council meeting last week, city treasurer Ricky Bell, SNP, said a letter had been received which confirmed a “meaningful contribution” will be made. Negotiations are ongoing over “what a meaningful contribution is in terms of pounds and pence”, he added.

The council’s finance chief, Robert Emmott, said he hoped the contribution “was in the 70/80% of the costs if it was to be meaningful to the impact on the city, but that’s a conversation that we need to have”.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said it was aware of the city’s “acute pressures” and funding decisions for 2027/28 would be “confirmed through the budget process in the normal fashion”.

Glasgow City Council is facing a potential budget shortfall of over £111m next year, with homelessness, alongside the roll-out of a new pay and grading structure, a major contributor to that gap.

A council report stated the extra homelessness costs are “driven by the combined impact of Home Office policies and the statutory obligations arising under Scottish legislation”. Most of the additional cost relates to spending on hotels and B&Bs as temporary accommodation.

Pat Togher, chief officer of Glasgow’s integration joint board (IJB), which is responsible for homelessness, told councillors that there had been a “fairly favourable reduction” in people staying in hotels and B&Bs. Speaking at the meeting on Thursday (August 20), he said the figure had dropped from 2,378 people to 2,179.

The council has previously committed to meeting the cost of homelessness overspends for the health and social care partnership, which is managed by the IJB.

That cost was £38m in 2025/26 and £56m has been budgeted for 2026/27. Estimates for 2027/28 suggest costs will rise to £75m, with £93m forecast in 2028/29.

Council leader Susan Aitken, SNP, said the meeting with the deputy first minister had been “very positive” and she was “very open to the case that we were making for Glasgow”.

Cllr Allan Casey, SNP, the council’s convener for homelessness, said: “We’ve had extensive dialogue with the Scottish Government on these issues, especially around the asylum situation. Unfortunately still there has been no engagement whatsoever from any politician from the UK Government.

“I think that’s something that is deeply troubling that despite the pressures Glasgow is facing, the UK Government is not engaging at a political level with this council.”

Cllr Jon Molyneux, Greens, said ongoing talks with the Scottish Government were welcome but “sustained investment” was needed.

“The one-off solution isn’t going to work and it needs to be a balance of capital, revenue and probably policy action as well,” he added.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Everyone in Scotland has a right to support when experiencing homelessness and we are aware of the acute pressures facing Glasgow City Council in addressing this situation.

“While the legal duty for preventing and responding to homelessness sits with local authorities, the Scottish Government is providing Glasgow City Council with £123 million this year through our Affordable Housing Supply Programme, alongside £302,000 in 2026-27 to support the resettlement of newly recognised refugees.

“We are also taking decisive action through our Housing Emergency Action Plan, which commits up to £4.9 billion over four years to deliver around 36,000 affordable homes across Scotland.

“Details of funding decisions for 2027-28 will be confirmed through the Budget process in the normal fashion. This will be directly informed by our continuing engagement with Glasgow City Council on their identified pressures.”