Commenting on the latest National Records of Scotland homeless
deaths statistics, Housing Minister said:
“Every premature and preventable death is a tragedy and I send my
deepest condolences to those affected by the loss of friends or
family who were homeless. Scotland already has the strongest
rights in the UK for people experiencing homelessness, but we are
committed to ensuring that no one need become homeless in the
first place.
“That is why we are investing in the £100 million multi-year
ending homelessness together fund to prevent homelessness, end
rough sleeping and reduce temporary accommodation use. This
includes supporting local authorities to deliver Housing First,
which has provided a settled home alongside personalised support
to more than 1800 people since 2019. We have also made
record funding of more than £14 billion available to councils in
2024-25 to deliver a range of services, including in
homelessness.
“Through our £250 million National Mission on Drugs we're taking
a wide range of actions, including opening the UK's first Safer
Drug Consumption Facility pilot, working towards drug-checking
facilities and widening access to life-saving naloxone. We've
maintained a record £112 million to local Alcohol and Drug
Partnerships for treatment and support services and we're working
with partners to support and build ADP leadership across
Scotland.
“We are investing nearly £600 million this year in
affordable homes, including an additional £40 million to increase
the availability of social and affordable homes through
acquisitions and bringing long term voids back into use.
“The Housing (Scotland) Bill, which is currently at stage 1, will
place a stronger emphasis on homelessness prevention based on
better coordination across services and providing support
earlier. This will help people avoid the crisis of homelessness
and the longer term harms associated with it.”
