No end in sight for housing emergency

On Tuesday, the Scottish Government published the latest homelessness figures for Scotland.

- BY WEST SCOTLAND LABOUR MSP PAUL O’KANE

The numbers reinforce the reality that many Scots already know too well: our country is in the grips of a housing emergency and there are very few signs of the SNP Scottish Government bringing it to an end any time soon.

‘The Scottish Government’s latest figures state that, as of March 31, 2025, there were 10,180 children in temporary accommodation in Scotland - that’s a one per cent increase compared to March 2024.

Across Scotland, there are 34,067 households that were assessed as homeless - including 15,046 children.

The number of households reporting rough sleeping the night before application has increased.

One of the most difficult findings to read is that it is households with children who spend, on average, the longest time in temporary accommodation.

So much for the Scottish Government's declaration of a national housing emergency’.

‘The figures also reveal the scale of the problem in our Renfrewshire communities; and they make for grim reading.