Councils will receive a share of an additional £40m this year to increase the supply of social and affordable homes.
The funding, which was confirmed in April and has boosted the affordable housing supply programme budget to nearly £600m this year, will mostly be distributed to the five council areas with sustained temporary accommodation pressures: Edinburgh, Fife, Glasgow, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian.
The money will be used to purchase properties to help reduce the number of families in temporary accommodation or, where appropriate, to bring long term voids back into use.
The remaining 27 local authorities will receive a share of the remaining funding. A further £40m will be allocated to councils next year.
Housing Minister Paul McLennan said: “The delivery of affordable homes is the foundation of family life and is fundamental to how we achieve our priorities of eradicating child poverty and growing the economy.
“The key to tackling homelessness and reducing the time spent by families in temporary accommodation is to deliver more affordable homes.
“We have already supported councils to purchase almost 1,500 properties in 2023-24 for use as affordable homes. However, we must do more and, by committing £40m this year, we are accelerating that work.
“This money will help councils provide a warm, safe place that families can call home again.”
MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands, Gordon Macdonald has welcomed the SNP Scottish Government announcement of £40 million for councils across Scotland, including almost £15 million for Edinburgh, to boost the supply of affordable homes.
First Minister John Swinney outlined in the Programme for Government that £600 million would be committed to affordable housing in the current financial year and allocating this £40 million will allow for the purchase of properties to reduce temporary accommodation and bring vacant buildings back into use.
Across Scotland councils have been supported to purchase almost 1,500 properties in 2023-24 for use as affordable homes and the allocation of this £40 million will accelerate that work to ensure that families across Edinburgh have a safe and warm place to call home.
Commenting, Gordon Macdonald said: “Tackling the housing emergency is one of the major issues across the city and one of the key ways we can solve it is by bringing empty and vacant buildings back into use.
“This £40m fund, introduced by the SNP Government as part of the £600m affordable housing budget, will ensure that we can build on the 1,500 properties that were brought into use for affordable housing in the past year and the almost £15m allocated to Edinburgh will have a significant impact in tackling the housing crisis across the city.
“Every family in Edinburgh deserves to have a safe and warm place that they can call home and with the SNP in government that is exactly what they will get.”
Local authorities will receive the following share of funding:
| Local authority | £m |
| Aberdeen City | 0.375 |
| Aberdeenshire | 0.173 |
| Angus | 0.066 |
| Argyll and Bute | 0.135 |
| City of Edinburgh | 14.882 |
| Clackmannanshire | 0.173 |
| Dumfries and Galloway | 0.222 |
| Dundee City | 0.637 |
| East Ayrshire | 0.122 |
| East Dunbartonshire | 0.224 |
| East Lothian | 0.440 |
| East Renfrewshire | 0.196 |
| Eilean Siar | 0.082 |
| Falkirk | 0.751 |
| Fife | 1.848 |
| The Highland Council | 0.653 |
| Glasgow City | 11.544 |
| Inverclyde | 0.040 |
| Midlothian | 0.471 |
| Moray | 0.369 |
| North Ayrshire | 0.293 |
| North Lanarkshire | 0.673 |
| Orkney Islands | 0.085 |
| Perth and Kinross | 0.066 |
| Renfrewshire | 0.168 |
| Scottish Borders | 0.146 |
| Shetland Islands | 0.082 |
| South Ayrshire | 0.301 |
| South Lanarkshire | 1.724 |
| Stirling | 0.750 |
| West Dunbartonshire | 0.309 |
| West Lothian | 2.001 |
| Total | 40.000 |