Desperate residents seeking a new council home in Perth and Kinross face joining one of the country’s longest waiting lists.
Figures obtained under Freedom of Information revealed that there remains a crippling shortage of housing stock, despite council efforts to build new properties.
Proportionally, Perth and Kinross Council has the second largest waiting list in Scotland, with more than 4,000 residents seeking affordable accommodation.
Around 1,500 people have been forced to wait more than five years for permanent homes, while almost 800 have been on the register for at least 10 years.
Although the local authority has pledged to provide 125 additional homes annually, it could still take decades to clear the current list.
One of Scotland’s leading homeless charities told The Courier this came as “no surprise” and demanded action from the Scottish Government.
Director of Shelter Scotland, Graeme Brown, said: “We warned in 2012 that the waiting list for council homes across Scotland would take more than seven years to clear, given the size of the waiting list and the number of lets that became available that year.
“The squeeze on local authority housing budgets, changes to the benefits system, an ageing population and the increasing number of single-person households are creating further pressures on housing supply.
“It is encouraging that Perth and Kinross Council have set a target to build 100 new social homes each year but, to tackle our housing crisis and give people on council waiting lists true hope of a home of their own, Scotland needs to start building at least 10,000 new social homes a year for the foreseeable future.”
A spokeswoman from Perth and Kinross Council said the local authority is “committed” to helping those in need of accommodation.
She said: “The allocation of housing within Perth and Kinross is based on housing need, and the length of time an applicant will wait for housing is dependent on their housing need and current housing circumstances.
“Along with our partners, we are committed to applying the assessment criteria fairly and consistently to ensure that vacant properties are offered to those with the greatest housing need.”
According to council figures, the number of applicants on the Common Housing Register has “steadily reduced” since 2010.
This register is shared with Hillcrest Housing Association and Caledonia Housing Association, which provide 100 new-build houses every year.
The council also has an ongoing commitment to build 25 new homes each year and has completed 118 since May 2011.
These efforts have come under fire, however, with critics claiming the local authority “isn’t doing enough”.
Leader of the Liberal Democrat group, Councillor Peter Barrett, told The Courier that more has to be done.
He said: “Tackling housing need is one of the Liberal Democrats’ top priorities but the same can’t be said when you look at what the SNP council are doing and, more importantly, what they have failed to do.”
He said the council must “focus urgently” on priorities to build more houses and direct more resources towards house building.
“Firstly, it can borrow more to build more houses,” he went on.
“It must revise the housing investment plan in the short term while still keeping housing debt within prudential boundaries and protecting interests.
“The council can still do this and build more houses.”
Mr Barrett also called for the establishment of a short-term scrutiny panel to assess how the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) is used.
He added: “I have already pressed for the scrutiny committee to examine whether HRA procurement systems and practice deliver best value.”