South Lanarkshire Council is to invest £55m on the construction of 500 new homes, Scottish Housing News has reported.

Work on the homes, which will be made available for rent, is due to commence in 2015-16, with a final programme completion date of April 2020.

The plans for the developments have been approved by South Lanarkshire Council's Housing and Technical Resources Committee.

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The properties will be built to a very high standard of energy efficiency and the costs of each will qualify for a subsidy from the Scottish Government of £50,000.

Councillor Alex McInnes, Chair of Housing and Technical Resources, said: "This is not only a major investment that is planned by the council, but it is also a statement of how high a priority it is for us to address the lack of affordable housing in our area.

"The effects of the Right to Buy have reduced the council's housing stock dramatically, and the number of people looking for a home is extensive across our area. As a result, we are looking at a variety of ways to address this situation and the commitment to build 500 new homes will really help us with our waiting lists."

(JP/CD)