Making an investment
It is a well-documented fact that Edinburgh suffers from a shortage of affordable housing. There are, however, many factors which have led to the increased demand which Susan Deacon rightly points out has pushed average house prices beyond the reach of thousands of people on average salaries.
There is a shortage of land for building new housing to keep up with population growth. More people are now living alone, further increasing demand for properties which would previously have been shared by couples or families.
More people are investing in the property market, having lost confidence in stocks and shares and pensions. People have moved to Edinburgh from the south-east and have been able to pay a premium to secure the property of their choice. As demand has increased, prices have soared beyond the means of many people.
Right-to-buy legislation has reduced the number of properties available for rent and left local authorities with the difficult-to-let dregs of their housing stock.
If the housing shortage is allowed to continue, it could certainly have a detrimental effect on the economy, reducing the number of key employees who will be attracted to work in Edinburgh.
The Scottish Executive is now coming under pressure to invest in affordable housing for the city. The council already stipulates that major new housing developments should include a proportion of affordable housing for sale or rent. The council also plans to transfer its existing housing stock to a not-for-profit housing association, allowing it to write off millions in debt and build thousands of new homes for rent.
So is further intervention in the market by central or local government either necessary or desirable?
Affordable housing may benefit a few people in the short term, but what benefit will it have in the longer term? And is this the best way that public money could be spent?
Or would it not make more sense to invest in our transport infrastructure, improving road and rail links to Fife, the Lothians and the Borders, enabling more people to commute quickly and easily into the city centre?
Investment in housing alone cannot change the fact that there is a shortage of land in the city. Many brown-field sites have already been redeveloped, and it is not desirable that housing should be built on greenbelt land.
However, there are many towns within commuting distance of Edinburgh which are not readily accessible by car or rail. Investment in the reopening of the Borders rail link would reap far greater rewards for the city's economy than focusing on housing problems in isolation.
Scotsman.com, 1st November 2004
