Behind Scotland's deepening housing and homelessness emergency

Three years after Scotland's major cities and the nation as a whole declared housing emergencies, the situation continues to deteriorate. Homelessness has hit record highs, with over 19,000 households and more than 10,000 children currently living in temporary accommodation. At the same time, tens of thousands of households face threats of homelessness and hundreds of thousands remain on council waiting lists. While the demand for affordable and social housing surges, the actual construction of new homes is falling. Completions have declined for three consecutive years, and the number of new projects initiated has dropped to levels not seen since 2012. Housebuilders and industry bodies attribute these delays and rising costs to inflationary pressures on construction materials, a scarcity of designated building land, slow planning approvals, and heavy government regulations.