The Need and the SHQS 2015:

The need for good quality, warm, energy efficient and dry homes is not a need that is a political monopoly for any single political party. The need to lay down basic standards that have to met by all public sector housing providers, be they Council or Housing Associations (HAs), by a due date is a decision that was taken by the previous Scottish Executive in Holyrood. That Scottish Executive laid down a Scottish Housing Quality Standard to be achieved by 2015 – the SHQS 2015. For more information, please refer to: Scottish Executive definitions of SHQS – February 2004 

 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2004/02/18860/32772 and

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/47210/0030182.pdf

 Scottish Executive further Guidance – July  2004 

 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2004/07/19725/40741 and 

 http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/47060/0028724.pdf

In essence, the SHQS 2015 lays down requirements that mean that all public sector properties must be;

•  compliant with the tolerable standard
• free from serious disrepair;
• energy efficient
• provided with modern facilities and services;
• healthy, safe and secure.

 How to Pay for It:

Meeting the standard will be expensive and rents will rise whatever route is taken. Government funding support will be required, either directly or through HAs, and Housing Revenue Account (HRA) reserves will need to be used up. If stock transfer is employed, write-off of Housing Debt on current properties MAY be possible. But that will depend on whether or not tenants agree AND whether sufficient properties, in excess of 500 at a time, are proposed for transfer. Please refer to Scottish Housing Quality Standard – Government statement on Stock Transfer  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/Housing/16342/shqs

 How to Do It:

Following intensive studies and much consultation, the options for West Dunbartonshire are either transfer a proportion of properties up to a maximum of about 50% or let the Council retain the stock and do the work itself. Once the ‘How’ has been decided upon, a strategic plan called the Standard Delivery Plan (SDP) has to be agreed by Council and endorsed by the Scottish Government. The SNP policy is for maximum stock transfer, of almost 50%, anticipating debt write-off. The Labour policy is for the Council to retain the stock and to do the work itself. In financial terms, if debt write-off can be achieved there is significant benefit in transferring. So why not Transfer Stock?

•  In order to transfer, you must have tenants agreement. Consistent consultation with tenants and their representative groups clearly indicates that there is no appetite for stock transfer from our tenants at the moment and without their agreement, there can be no stock transfer. 
• Stock transfer depends on significant funding support for the Scottish government and that is not guaranteed at the present time.
• It takes a long time and requires a great deal of legal and consultancy work and tenants’ ballot with a majority vote in favour has to be carried out before proceeding. The latest report to the Housing, Environment and Economic Development (HEED) Committee states that this process will take three years.
• It is expensive. Consultants and lawyers have to be paid out of tenants’ money that could otherwise be used to upgrade houses. The estimate is in excess of £2million.
• By retaining stock, control remains with the Council and its tenants. There is no need of a ballot. Delivery timescales are shorter. No fees to consultants and lawyers and spend the £2million on upgrading properties.

 Council Decision:

On 29^th October 2008,  the Council agreed, by the casting vote of the Provost – the Council was evenly split 11 for stock transfer and 11 against – to go down the stock transfer route and the SDP was put together on that basis. For full details of the meeting, please refer to http://wdccmis.west-dunbarton.gov.uk/CMISWebPublic/Binary.ashx?Document=7205

 Where are we now?

Almost a year later, we now know that achieving debt write-off is problematic at the very least. It is the Labour Group view that if this information had been as clear in October 2008 as it is now, the Council may have taken a different decision. With three years to go before stock will be transferred and major work begun, even though there are still six years to go before the deadline, officers are preparing to apply for exemptions from the SHQS 2015 to the Scottish Government. In other words, the Standard Delivery Plan will not deliver the SHQS by 2015 and they are preparing for failure.

Summary:

The Labour Group wants the SHQS to be met as soon as possible with the view that 2015 is the absolute deadline, not an aspiration. We see tenants’ money being used to pay for a process that is doomed to fail as a shameful waste of their money. We believe that the Council, in partnership with its tenants and the Scottish Government, by delivering the SHQS under its own control and subject to scrutiny will deliver good quality, warm, energy efficient and dry homes faster and cheaper than by the stock transfer route. And that is why West Dunbartonshire Labour Group says, ‘No to Stock Transfer!’