Council suspends Right-to-Buy for 10 years to 'safeguard stock'

Published by 24publishing for 24dash.com in Housing and also in Central Government, Communities, Local Government

Aberdeen City Council has agreed plans to suspend the Right-to-Buy in 50 letting areas of the city for a period of 10 years.

It said the move to designate parts of the city as “pressured area status” (PAS), was to “safeguard the continued availability of council houses” in areas where Right-to-Buy has led, or may lead to, a serious shortage of properties.

The UK Government has reinvigorated the scheme – originally launched by Margaret Thatcher in 1980 – in England and has quadrupled the discounts in some parts of the country.

In Scotland there are two forms of Right-to-Buy: the original form, introduced by the Thatcher government in 1980 – which offers extremely attractive discounts – and the ‘Modernised Right to Buy’ introduced in Scotland in 2001, which offers less attractive discounts.

More than 18,000 council properties have been sold in Aberdeen since the scheme was launched in 1980. Across Scotland, the figure stretches to half-a-million. 

The council - which owns a stock of 22,704 homes - has 5,311 people on its waiting list.

The Scottish Government previously approved the suspension of Right-to-Buy in Aberdeen in 35 letting areas, however, the suspension expires on 4 September. The new suspension is planned to kick in on this date.

Under a Scottish Government Act – passed in 2010 – it’s now up to local authorities to make, amend and revoke so-called ‘pressured area status’ zones, where it can be justified.

The council said the areas affected will be “reviewed on a regular basis” taking into consideration any changes to Right-to-Buy legislation or PAS guidance.

Of the 1,324 tenants that responded to the consultation, 56% of respondents agreed with the proposal.

Housing and Environment Committee convener Councillor Neil Cooney said: “There is a real need to ensure that we maximise the use of our existing resources by ensuring that priority is given to those in the greatest housing need.

“The demand for housing from homeless, new applicants and those who need or want a transfer remains very high.

"However, the council has numerous affordable and council housing developments either recently completed or nearing completion and that will go some way to helping alleviate housing waiting lists.”

The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) welcomed the move and is calling on the Right to Buy to be scrapped altogether in Scotland, to protect scarce social housing. It warns that around 70,000 properties owned by housing associations will come into Right To Buy eligibility in September 2012.

The vast majority of these properties, it says, do not lie in areas currently subject to 'pressured area status', and warns that it is "difficult to see much prospect of these properties being protected from RTB without Ministerial intervention".

Andy Young, Policy Manager at SFHA, said: “We welcome the news that Aberdeen City Council has suspended the modernised Right-to-Buy in many of its communities. Right-to-Buy is a policy which has seen half a million homes lost to the affordable sector in Scotland.

“The Scottish Government has in recent years passed legislation to restrict the modernised Right-to-Buy for all new tenants and new build properties. The government has also made it clear that they might be prepared to restrict the Right-to-Buy even further. The SFHA supports this and calls on the Scottish Government to be bold.”

He added: “In these difficult economic times, a plentiful supply of well-managed and affordable rented stock is more important than ever. Right to Buy is a policy which has had its day and should now be scrapped.”

Several areas of Scotland have recently successfully applied for pressured area status whereby the Right-to-Buy is suspended: these include Moray, parts of Stirling, North Lanarkshire and Aberdeenshire.