Angus Council's Neighbourhood Services Convener, Councillor Donald Morrison, has welcomed a decision by the Scottish Government to increase affordable housing in Scotland.

The announcement, which was made earlier this week, will see an increase in the amount of grant which local authorities and Housing Associations can claim to help with building affordable houses to rent.

Housing Associations can now claim between £58,000 and £72,000 per unit while councils can claim between £46,000 and £50,000 per unit. In addition, there is a facility to make a case for extra help, where a strong case can be made for either a challenging site or additional innovation.

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The Scottish Government also announced an additional £712,000 for Angus Council between 2012 and 2015, which will be used to develop additional affordable housing for a range of housing needs.

Commenting on the new funds, Councillor Morrison said: "This is fantastic news. The Scottish Government has listened to the housing movement and responded positively with both higher grant rates and more money. This will hopefully encourage greater numbers of affordable homes to be built and also provide a welcome boost to our construction industry.

"We will be getting in touch with all our housing association partners and asking them what difference this will make to their building plans as well as updating our building and financial plans to make the most of this announcement.

"Only yesterday we launch our latest housing development of 26 family and adapted homes at Wirren Gardens in Montrose. By making the most of the opportunities for meeting housing needs of existing tenants and careful use of our allocations system we will secure between 80 and 100 housing outcomes making the money go as far as possible."

(JP/CD)